Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Breakers of Dawn and Dusk
by MelodicWaters
Summary: Uncover a whole new storyline with a whole new twist in a new Pokemon Mystery Dungeon! Join Vivi and Zach on their incredible adventure full of fun, adventure, sacrifice, and perhaps, a little romance and drama. OC submissions now closed.
1. Chapter 1: The Girl

The beginning of our story takes place in a world of unknown….and in the middle of this rainbow-colored dimension, is a girl.

"…Where am I…." the girl whispered, her voice barely audible.

"_Welcome! To the world of Pokémon! Before you embark on your journey, you must undergo an exam."_

"Exam? W-what exam?" she exclaimed.

"_Please touch this ribbon. It will reveal your aura and personality."_

"You didn't really answer my question, but whatever." She shrugged, touching the transparent ribbon, which seemed to sparkle at her touch.

Suddenly, the ribbon was enveloped in a bright light, which grew brighter and brighter until the girl was forced to close her eyes. Soon, after the light had dimmed, the girl opened her eyes to see the ribbon. It had a bright lively shine to it, and had taken on a beautiful violet color.

"_It seems like you are the relaxed type! You're so causal, leisurely, and carefree. You don't rush or stress yourself out, and you don't worry about anything. You like to take a seat and kick up your feet! Oh yes! You definitely have an easygoing personality, and you don't sweat the details. People naturally flock to you because they find you to be a free spirit, which is so refreshing!"_

"…I suppose I'm somewhat like that." The girl agreed half-heartedly.

"_Now…the final question. What do you look for in a partner?"_

The girl was startled but answered nonetheless.

"W-well…I suppose…I want my partner…to be sensible and understanding. They don't jump to conclusions, and are always helpful. Someone who is quiet, but strong. Someone who will never back down from a fight, and has a will of iron." She said slowly.

"…_.yes….yes I believe I have found someone suited to your description. Now! You're all ready! Go forth and fulfill your destiny!"_

"W-wait! What are you talking about-WAHHHHHHHHH!"


	2. Chapter 2: Team DarkFlame

"Extra news on the bulletin board! Read all about it!" cried a small puppy-like Pokémon with its facial hair thicker than the rest who was Levacen Town's advertiser. Its cute bark attracted the attention of many Pokémon, including a certain young Zorua's.

"Oi! Lillipup!" cried the Zorua, running up to Lillipup.

"Ah! Good morning Zach! What can I do for you?" chirped Lillipup, wagging its tail at the sight of seeing an old friend.

"Umm…what _kind_ of news is on the bulletin board this time?" asked Zach, trying his best to be secretive.

Lillipup smiled understandingly. He had known Zach for years, and the fact that Zach wanted to join an exploration team, but to join, he needed another Pokémon to accompany him. Unfortunately, not one in Levacen Town had shared his thirst for exploring. That's why Zach was always so eager to see the bulletin board, in order to find someone to form a team with him.

"Why don't you see for yourself?" encouraged Lillipup.

"W-well…." Stammered the Zorua, looking around. Zach was always the 'cool' type of character, and he didn't want anyone but close friends seeing him get so eager. "Ok. N-not like there's anything important in there for me to get excited over anyway."

Lillipup grinned as Zach ran off in the direction of the board.

As soon as Zach reached the board, he quickly scanned it. He tried to keep the disappointment off his face as he realized the board was once again, empty of acquaintances. He sighed and walked in the direction of the cliffs, where he lived. As he was getting ready to go back in his bed and await another day, he saw a red foxlike creature at the very edge of the cliff! Zach dashed to the creature's side, and pulled it away from danger. Soon it stirred.

"Ugh….Where am I…." it mumbled sleepily.

"H-hey you…are you okay?" Zach asked uncertainly.

As the creature got up, Zach realized it was a Vulpix. The Vulpix looked at the Zorua strangely then jumped back in surprise.

"Y-you talked…?" It said in disbelief. It sounded like a girl.

"W-well, yeah. You talked too; it's only like, the most natural thing in the whole world." Zach said uncomfortably.

"Did I shrink..?" she asked, more of to herself than the Zorua.

"Uhh, no. You're pretty much the average size of a Vulpix." Zach said.

"Vulpix? What are you talking about? I'm a human! Hellooo!" she yelled in annoyance.

"Why don't you look in a mirror _human_?" Zach scoffed sarcastically.

The Vulpix blinked in frustration held up her front paws. She looked at them in disbelief. She started to look at herself, and grew pale.

"I…don't believe this…" she mumbled, clearly lost in her own thoughts.

"Tch. Well you better believe it sister." Zach said. "What's your name?"

"….Vivi…." she whispered.

All of a sudden, a Petilil came and bumped into them both.

"Oopsy! So sorry! Oh hello Zach! Who's your new friend?" it asked quickly. Vivi looked amazed at the Pokémon's rapid talk.

"Oh hi Petilil. This is Vivi. She's new. What's your rush?" Zach asked. Vivi looked at Zach.

"_So his name's Zach….if I recall, he didn't tell me his name. Oh well, now I know."_ Vivi thought.

"Oh, hi Vivi! Anyway, I just needed to tell you something! I lost an item! I was hoping you could help me find it! It won't count as a real exploration, but it'll do, right?" Petilil said swiftly.

Zach's eyes twinkled with excitement.

"Lost item…?" I joined in.

"Hehe! You can help too!" she chirped.

"We'll help, but why didn't you ask Cottonee instead?" Zach asked, referring to Petilil's teammate.

"Oh, he's busy! But never mind him! Let's go, go, go!" she beamed.

She guided them through town and to a small cave, which was just outside bounds. It had an eerie but exciting look to it. It was made of rock, and looked like a cave and a hole combined.

"This is the Tiny Hole! I accidentally dropped an item in here!" Petilil said, before carefully climbing in. Zach climbed in after her with full confidence, but Vivi hesitated a little before giving in and dropping down. Unfortunately, she had not been careful and hit the bottom of the hole on her bottom.

"Ow…." she said sorely, getting up and following her companions.

Tiny Hole B1

Vivi's POV

It was eerily dark, but well lit enough to see.

"Umm guys? Exactly what do we do in here?" I asked, ignoring the urge to run out of there screaming.

"We travel until we find stairs that allow us to go deeper and deeper. Then we reach the deepest part of the dungeon." Zach explained, looking around.

Suddenly, a Patrat and Caterpie appeared in our path. Normally, I wouldn't panic, but I was the size of a Pokémon now, and the Caterpie and Patrat never looked so…._big._

Petilil and Zach got ready to fight. Zach quickly launched at the Patrat with a bite as Petilil got rid of the Caterpie with a Magical Leaf. I felt guilty that I wasn't helping as I watched the enemies faint. I wanted to help, but I had no idea how to, so feeling embarrassed, I kept quiet. Soon enough, we reached the stairs and advanced further.

Tiny Hole B2

Zach's POV

As Petilil began collecting items, I couldn't help but notice that in our last battle, Vivi purposely stayed out of the fight. I thought no matter how weak she is she should've known at least a move to lower the opponent's status, right? Geez, I was beginning to believe her little human story. We encountered some Wurmple and Pidove, but they were no challenge for my Bite and Petilil's Magical Leaf.

"_Does she really not know how to use moves?_" I thought as I saw a guilty look on her face.

We finally found the stairs and went down deeper.

Tiny Hole B3

Vivi's POV

I feel really useless…It wasn't my fault that I was never a Pokémon before and didn't know how to use moves! But…at the same time….I feel like it kind of is my fault….

Dozens of Wurmple and Caterpie appeared, apparently to avenge their siblings. Zach and Petilil were putting up a really good fight, but they were outnumbered.

"Vivi! Do something!" cried Petilil, as she got hit by a tackle from a Wurmple.

"Vivi! Focus on something and release it!" yelled Zach.

I had no idea what he meant by that, but decided to do it anyway. I tried evening out my strength throughout my body and charged at the nearest Caterpie. I accidentally sent the one I hit flying and it swept a line of enemies back. I felt extremely proud of what I did.

"Good job! You used tackle!" congratulated Zach.

I beamed at the recognition and we raced to the stairs after we wiped the rest out.

Tiny Hole Pit

Vivi's POV

"Yoo-hoo! We found it! We found it!" sang Petilil happily.

"What were we searching for anyway?" Zach asked.

"This!" beamed Petilil, showing an assortment of berries, seeds, and orbs.

"Umm…you 'lost' these?" I asked uncertainly.

"Yup! I was collecting these when I tripped over a rock and dropped all of them down the hole! I guess it ended up here!" she exclaimed happily.

Zach and I sweat-dropped at her perkiness.

"Well then, time to get out of here!" she said cheerfully.

Levacen Town (Bulletin Board)

Vivi's POV

"Hey you two make an excellent team you know!" Petilil winked.

Zach realized what she was getting to and widened his eyes in realization.

"How about it Zach?" she grinned.

"N-no…she probably wouldn't…." he argued.

"Never know until you try!" Petilil insisted.

Zach seemed to give in and faced me.

"Vivi, do you want to make an exploration team with me?" Zach blurted.

"Exploration team?" I asked quizzically.

"Yup. An exploration team is a team that gets to explore and discover new things! They sometimes help Pokémon and arrest them too." Clarified Petilil.

"_I have nowhere to go and nothing to return to…I don't know my past…so I can only make my future."_ I thought determinedly.

"I'll do it!" I exclaimed.

"Really? Awesome!" cheered Zach, hugging me and Petilil gratefully. Petilil simply giggled, but I blushed, at never being hugged by a guy.

"To become a real team, we have to register and become apprentices at Swanna's guild!" Zach said, releasing us from his embrace.

"Come on, I'll guide you to the guild and help you guys get started!" cooed Petilil, dragging us to a huge building. It looked about to be three stories tall with a picture of a Swanna on the very top. It had a Swanna's wings on either side of it. Petilil stepped up to the closed door and pushed a buzzed with a speaker next to it. The buzzer emitted a buzzing doorbell sound as a voice boomed, "Who's there?"

"Yoo-hoo! Heatmor! It's me, Petilil!" she said into the speaker.

"Ah, Petilil come in, come in" invited Heatmor as the door creaked open. There was a ladder made out of vine that seemed to spiral upward. Zach's face had excitement and eagerness written all over it.

"Come up now! Don't be shy!" giggled Petilil as she started up the ladder. Zach climbed it eagerly, as I went up last.

On the second floor, many apprentices were gathered in groups, talking among themselves.

"Petilil, it's about time you came back!" boomed a voice disapprovingly, as a Leavanny came up from the third floor, holding a pen and a clipboard.

"Hehe, sorry Ms. Leavanny!" said Petilil, with no hint of sadness in her voice.

"Never mind that-oh? What's this?" Ms. Leavanny asked, peering at Zach and me.

"These are our new apprentices!" huffed Petilil proudly. "They came to register!"

"I see…well then, are you youngsters up to the challenge?" warned Ms. Leavanny

"Yes Ma'am!" We said in union.

"Very well then follow me!" she said, climbing up the ladder leading to the third floor.

"Good luck! I'll be waiting for you outside." Petilil whispered.

We gave her a grateful look before going upwards.

As soon as Ms. Leavanny saw up she knocked on a thick wooden door, embedded with jewels.

"Oh Guildmaster! Guildmaster, it's Ms. Leavanny! I'm coming in!" she said, opening the heavy door.

We entered a room full of antique and numerous other things. On the far center was a swan-like creature with rounded feathers on each side of its head. It turned around to greet us with a smile.

"Hello. I'm Swanna, the Guildmaster of Swanna Guild. I understand you want to make an exploration team, yes?" Swanna spoke politely.

"Yes!" Zach cried eagerly, waving his tail back and forth.

"Very well then. But first, what is your team name?" she asked.

"Uhh team name?" asked Zach worriedly.

"_We haven't thought of a team name…"_ I though in concern. Suddenly, an idea hit me like lightning. I quickly whispered my idea in Zach's ear and he returned it with a nod of great approval.

"Team DarkFlame!" we exclaimed in sync.

"Alright then, Team DarkFlame." Smiled Swanna. "Here's your explorer kit." She pushed a little box toward us.

We approached it and opened it nervously. Inside was a treasure bag and a map, along with some badges and scarfs.

"This is your treasure bag. It'll hold items you find in dungeons. You can get bigger bags as you move up in rank. Your rank is the status of your team. Your team is normal rank because you're rookies. You can increase your rank if you do more jobs. Your badge will change color as you move up in ranks. It also syndicates that you're apprentices of this guild. This map will show you where you are, and where you're going. These scarfs are useful items that can help your stats while fighting. This white scarf is an evasion scarf, which can improve your speed, and decrease your chances of getting hit." Swanna said, as she handed Zach the white scarf.

"Cool!" breathed Zach, as he tied the scarf around his neck.

"And this green scarf is a defense scarf, which can improve your defense and help you launch defensive attacks more efficiently too." Swanna said as she handed me the green one.

"That's awesome!" I exclaimed as I wrapped the scarf around my own neck.

"And that's all. While you train in here, you will be requested to sleep and live here too. Be aware that you must awake early in the morning to meet our calls. You are dismissed." Swanna smiled.

We quickly bowed and left with Ms. Leavanny.

"Oh, Ms. Leavanny! May I show them to their room?" chirped Petilil who seemed to come out of nowhere.

"Why yes of course. Thank you Petilil." Ms. Leavanny said, as she walked off.

"Dinner time!" cried a green jelly-like creature with ears that didn't seem to connect to it.

"That's Reuniclus, he makes all the meals." Introduced Petilil, as she leaded us to the mess hall.

We quickly dug in and finished our dinners swiftly, due to the fact that we were famished after today's events. Petilil showed us to our rooms and left us to sleep. Our rooms were dimly lit and had two comfy looking hay beds. I comfortably snuggled down on one of the beds. I sighed in satisfaction.

"I wonder…Vivi are you really a human?" asked Zach firmly.

"Yes I am. Although I have no recollection of my past as a human." I sighed. "Why? Do you believe me now?"

"I guess it kind of makes sense." Zach admitted. "Well maybe we'll find your past while we're exploring."

"Maybe…..I hope….so…" I yawned, as I drifted off to sleep.

Unknown

Unknown POV

"It's here…..our key is here….it won't be long now…"

**Okay, this is my first fic and it's very suckish, I know :P If you're going to leave flames, please make them helpful and nice please D: And since I'm trying to come up with a whole new storyline, it might take some time. Also, I really want to have submissions for OCs, but I feel like I can't handle it yet. So as soon as I feel more confident, I may have OCs be submitted Okay plz review! (No matter how newbish it is!)**


	3. Chapter 3: Tours plus OC form

**Oh….what the heck! Okay guys you can submit OCs xP OC form will be at the end.**

Swanna Guild

Vivi's POV

"Wake UPP!" cried a voice as the room became brightly lit.

"W-what?" I groaned as I opened my eyes. Immediately, I shut them again because the light was so bright, it hurt my eyes!

"Turn off the light and we'll get up!" came Zach's voice from beside me.

The light became a little dimmer, but still pretty powerful. We decided that it was good enough and stood up to see a serious-faced Blitzle.

"Good. You're up. Now get to the callings before I shine the light on you again." He said seriously before leaving.

As soon as we realized that we were training in the guild, we quickly got up and went to the main room. As Ms. Leavanny saw us come in, she announced for Swanna to come in. When Swanna emerged the whole guild erupted into a chant.

"ONE! WORK HARD ON HARD WORK! TWO! DETERMINATION IS THE KEY TO EXTERMINATION OF BAD HABITS! THREE! STAND UP TALL TO NEVER FALL!

"Ok Pokémon, get to work!"

"HOORAY!"

After the crown dispersed, we were left standing alone.

"Ah, you two!" chirped Ms. Leavanny "Since you're rookies, today you will merely be exploring and getting used to Levacen Town and Swanna Guild."

Zach looked deflated, but I wagged my six tails in excitement.

"Alright…let me get someone to do the job…." Ms. Leavanny said, looking around.

"No need….I have lived in Levacen Town all my life…I can show Vivi around…" Zach sighed.

"Okay, but you need a tour guide around the guild….ah! Blitzle! Blitzle come here please!" Ms. Leavanny called.

I heard a sigh and saw the very same Blitzle that woke us up coming towards us.

"Yes, Ms. Leavanny?" asked Blitzle, putting on a thin smile.

"Blitzle, please show them around the guild." Requested Ms. Leavanny as she left. "I'll leave it up to you!"

As she left Blitzle lost his smile and turned to us.

"Alright, let's get this over with…" he grumbled.

Zach and I exchanged glances as we followed.

"Over here is the hallway leading to the rooms. That thick wooden door is Guildmaster Swanna's headquarters. Opposite the rooms is the mess hall. Not too far from the mess hall is where Heatmor controls the entrance and the speakers. Over there is Yamask's lottery. It doesn't seem like it's open though." Guided Blitzle as Heatmor gave a friendly wave.

We moved on to the second floor.

"On the left wall is the job bulletin board. Here you can find escorts, rescues, item finding, and anything else except for arresting. That's for the other board on the right. In the middle is Reuniclus's assembly. Not open either though." Continued Blitzle as Reuniclus was setting up.

As we got outside, we thanked him for his kindness, although he just waved it off.

"Someone got up on the wrong side of bed this morning." I whispered to Zach after Blitzle left.

'Tell me about it. Is he always like this?" agreed Zach. "But never mind that. Time to start your tour of Levacen Town!'

I giggled as I followed him on the road.

"To the south is the Tiny Hole, also along with many other dungeons. North is Swanna's guild, obviously, considering we just came from there. On the left is the town's bulletin board, filled with info about everything that's going on. To the right is Levacen Town!" Zach said enthusiastically, as he went to the right.

We entered a square full of Pokémon buzzing about.

"Over there is Chandelure Bank, where you can keep your money. There is Gavantula's linking shop. It doesn't look like he's in today though. Just below it is Audino's nursery, where she'll take care of your eggs. Below Chandelure Bank, is Sawk and Throh's Dojo. They are brothers and can help you train to become stronger." Zach pointed out.

We went across the bridge to other places.

"Near the bridge is the Monkey's shop! Where Pansage, Pansear, and Panpour run their own shops. Pansage sells seed and berries, Pansear sells Gummies and accessories, and Panpour sells orbs and TMs. Next to it is Crustle's storage! You can store anything in there, when you don't have room in your treasure bag. And that's pretty much it!" exclaimed Zach.

"Wow. It sure is a big place when you look at it." I marveled.

"Yeah, I guess so. Since our tour is over, let's go back and tell Ms. Leavanny! Race you there!" yelled Zach as he zoomed off.

"Hey! No fair!" I screamed after him.

**Okay I'll stop there. Okay, I want to be unique as possible, so PLEASE if someone has the Pokémon you want, then please choose another one. It can be the pre-evolved form or vice versa. Here are the minor Pokémon you can't pick. **

**Heatmor-Controller of entrance**

**Blitzle-Waker-upper(lol)**

**Audino-Nursery**

**Leavanny-right-hand**

**Swanna-Guildmaster**

**Yamask-lottery guy**

**Reuniclus- assembly and chef**

**Lillipup-messenger**

**Gavantula-linking**

**Sawk and Throh- Dojo **

**Pansear, Pansage, and Panpour- Marketing**

**Crustle-storage**

**Petilil- minor char.**

**Zach(Zorua)-partner**

**Vivi(Vulpix)- main character**

**Okay those are the Pokémon you can't pick (I'm sorry if you wanted to pick one of them) and their roles, but you CAN pick any Pokémon from any generation except legendaries(I'm planning to do something with them later) also…please only straight OCs please…I'm not good at doing homosexual stuff...sorry... you can either do a solo person or put him or her in a team. Okay, without further ado, the OC form. **

**Name: (Include nicknames please)**

**Gender: (….I'm not explaining this.)**

**Species: (Please don't pick the same as the ones up there or anyone else. PLEASE)**

**Personality: (Be exact as Possible! If not 6 sentences or more, I won't accept)**

**Distinctive Features: (Something that a normal –insert species here- wouldn't have. birthmark, clothing, etc.)**

**Opinion of Zach and Vivi:**

**Opinion of other OCs: (if you're the first OC, ignore this.)**

**Likes:**

**Dislikes: **

**History: (please no dramatic histories. Has to have at least ONE guardian. Doesn't have to be birth parent)**

**Crush: (If you want your OC to have a crush, list who here.)**

**Other: (anything else that doesn't belong in any of the other categories.)**

**-Team OC form-**

**Team Name: **

**Team Members: (including nicknames)**

**Rank: (please no crazy Master rank or anything like that only normal-gold please.)**

**Team Members Personality:**

**Team Member's unique features:**

**Team Member's history:**

**Opinion of other OC TEAMS: (only teams here this includes Zach and Vivi's team, Team DarkFlame.)**

**Crushes:**

**How the guild views them: (what are they like to the guild?) **

**Okay here's an example of each,**

**Name: Petilil**

**Gender: Female**

**Species: Petilil**

**Personality: Hyper and upbeat. Can be very crazy at times and always seems to talk in a fast motion. Though she can sense love like a hound, she is very dense to love when it comes to herself. Amazingly energetic and always seems to be buzzing around. Can be very annoying. Positive and cheerful. Never seen without a smile on her face. Almost never sad or mad.**

**Distinctive Features: None**

**Opinion of Zach and Vivi:**

**Zach: Thinks he is nice, but quiet. Wonders if he likes Vivi. If he does and she likes him…hohoho cupid's going to strike!**

**Vivi: Sweet and shy. Wonders if SHE likes ZACH. **

**Opinion of other OCs: None**

**Likes: Being hyper and crazy, leaves, nature, happiness, love, and light**

**Dislikes: evil, darkness, lazy, sadness, anger, and cold**

**History: was a childhood friend with Cottonee. When he left to become an explorer, she followed him. Her parents let her, and became a real team with Cottonee.**

**Crush: None**

**Other: None**

**-Team-**

**Team name: Team GrassLovers**

**Team members: Cottonee-male-leader, Petilil-female-Co-leader**

**Rank: Bronze**

**Team member's personality: **

**Petilil: mentioned above**

**Cottonee: Incredibly protective over Petilil. Always tries to look on the bright side of things, but can't help it if something goes wrong. Seems to be the only one that doesn't get tired of Petilil's hyperness. The only one that can round up Petilil. Serious and well-mannered. Calm and active. Hates it when he knows he didn't try his best.**

**Team member's unique features: None for both**

**Team member's history: **

**Petilil: Mentioned above**

**Cottonee: Was always pretending to be an explorer. When the chance finally came, he accepted without hesitation. Petilil loved him as a big brother and didn't want him to go. Petilil's parents made him swear to protect her, which he does. **

**Opinion of other OC teams:**

**Team DarkFlame (Vivi and Zach): knows they have good potential and likes their spunk.**

**Crushes: Petilil: None; Cottonee: Petilil**

**How the guild views them: The different and unusual team. But are bright and funny for everyone. Values them as friends and teammates.**

**Okay, sorry, I know it's a lot to ask. Submissions will be closed in…..let's say…the end of April. I might close it early if I have too much or I might extend the deadline if I have too little. Oh well then, Have fun!**


	4. Chapter 4: First Job

**Sorry the last one was so boring. I'm planning to do something with the OCs for the next 3 chapters or 2, so send your OCs in! After 3 or 2 chapters, we'll start to reach something exciting. **

Swanna Guild

Vivi's POV

"Team DarkFlame, how was your tour?" Ms. Leavanny asked as we approached.

"Fine. Now may we _please_ go on a job?" asked Zach eagerly.

"Oh okay. You certainly are very eager. Look for a job on the left board." Ms. Leavanny gave in.

We both rushed off and scanned the board for a request.

"What's this….?" I asked, reaching out my paw to take it.

_Please rescue my dear Frillish! I can't do it alone….please help!_

Client: Frillish

Objective: Rescue Frillish

Place: Thick Woods B7

Restrictions: None

Difficulty: B (30)

Reward: 3000 P + Gummies

"Wait. Frillish needs Frillish to be rescued?" I asked uncertainly.

"Eh it's fine let's go." Said Zach.

"Where is Thick Woods anyway?" I asked.

"Just around Tiny Hole. Let's go!" Zach said as he grabbed my paw and rushed off.

Thick Woods B1

Vivi's POV

Zach was eagerly picking up items as we went.

"Zach, don't you think we should save some space?" I asked.

"No problem!" Zach just said as he picked up yet another item.

I sighed and tackled a Sunkern who came too close to us for my liking.

"Also, don't use up your moves to fast, or else you'll use up your PP." Zach warned, munching on an apple.

"PP? What's that?" I asked, also realizing my hunger and taking a bite out of an apple

Zach simply laughed and said, "You really are a human!"

I started to get upset.

"I _**am **_a human!" I said fiercely, feeling irritated.

We spotted the stairs and went down.

Thick Woods B2

Zach's POV

Geez I guess being a human is a touchy subject for her.

"Okay, okay, PP is the amount of moves you have. Each time you use a move, your PP goes down. Eventually, you don't have any PP for that move, and can't use it anymore. Happy now?" I sighed.

"No!" she simply yelled in frustration.

"Well what else do you want?" I mumbled in annoyance.

"I want you to believe I'm a human!" she groaned angrily.

She saw the stairs and marched towards it without waiting for me.

Thick Woods B3

Zach's POV

"Why else would I not know how to use moves, and what PP is?" Vivi mumbled angrily.

I racked my head over that.

"_It is weird how she didn't know anything at first. She said she didn't have any memories of being a human, but she just knows it. It would make sense if she was…"_ I thought to myself.

"Okay. It really does seem like you're a human Vivi-Vivi?" I looked around. Vivi was gone! I started to panic. "Vivi! Where are you?"

I desperately looked around in the treasure bag to see a rollcall orb. Quickly, I rubbed it lightly. There was a sudden blinding of light, but as it faded, Vivi reappeared, looking confused and dazed.

"You shouldn't have taken off by yourself!" I scolded.

"Taken off? You were the one who was too slow!" she countered.

I felt another comeback rising up, but I realized how happy I was to see her.

"…Whatever…" I mumbled.

She looked at me oddly but followed. We found another set of stairs and went down, the awkward moment still lingering.

Thick Woods B4

Zach's POV

"Okay…I believe you…you're a human…it seems like the only logical explanation for your lack of knowledge." I admitted.

She nudged me playfully, but smiled nonetheless.

"By the way, don't you have any other moves besides Tackle? I asked.

"Not any that I know." She replied.

"Well, take a look at your stats." I said.

"Stats?" she asked, tilting her head dumbly.

I sighed and pushed the button on the badge. It revealed a hologram of a card. It had my stats on there as well.

"Push the middle of your badge." I commanded. She did as she was told. "There you have Tackle, Growl, Tail Whip and Ember. And you're level….6! Hey! No fair, I'm only level 5!"

"I guess I'm stronger than you then." She giggled as we advanced deeper.

Thick Woods B5

Vivi's POV

As soon as we surfaced to another floor, Pokémon started dropping everywhere!

"Dammit! Monster House!" cursed Zach.

We stood back-to-back in fighting positions.

"Monster House is where tons of Pokémon are lying in wait to ambush you." Zach explained before I could ask.

"We're totally outnumbered!" I cried.

"….You have the defense scarf right?" Zach suddenly asked.

"Y-yeah…why?" I answered.

"Sorry if it hurts." He simply said before closing his eyes.

"W-wha? Zach, we're surrounded by Pokémon advancing closer to us each second and you're closing your eyes? Have you given up?" I snapped angrily.

"….Shut up. You're noisy." Zach mumbled before his body took on a dark purple outline.

"Z-zach..?" I asked feeling a little intimidated.

He opened his eyes to reveal a sickly violet color, which was vaguely familiar…..

"Dark Pulse" he whispered.

Suddenly, the outline quickly grew larger and spread towards all the enemies. Many of them fainted, but there were a few that survived. All of them saw Zach as an immediate threat, and charged at him, ignoring me. I saw that Zach was exhausted and I rushed to his aid. The Pokémon were coming ominously close. I couldn't tackle them all at once, so I couldn't use tackle. Growl and Tail Whip were moves that only lowered stats, and wouldn't help me inflict physical damage. I wanted to use ember desperately, but I didn't know how to.

Suddenly I remembered Zach's words on our first adventure….

-Flashback-

"_Vivi! Focus on something and use it!"_

-End of Flashback-

I started to gather my energy in my mouth. My mouth started to feel exceedingly hot. Suddenly, I couldn't hold the heat any longer, and released it. I produced a fiery flame, which wiped out the remaining opponents quickly, due to it being super effective. Zach started to stir slowly.

"Zach! Are you alright?" I asked hurriedly.

"Did I defeat them…?' he asked groggily.

"Yes. Yes you did. With a little help from Vivi Vulpix." I winked.

"Hey…can you get an Oran berry from the bag…? It's the blue one." Zach asked.

"..Um Zach? There are three different kinds of blue. A really light cyan one, a dark indigo one and one that's just in the middle." I said.

"The middle one." Croaked Zach.

I quickly got it out and held it up for him to eat. He slowly took bites out of it until there was no more. He regained his energy and stood up.

"Oran berries help you heal." Zach laughed, looking at my awe-struck face.

We spotted the stairs and climbed down.

Thick Woods B6

Vivi's POV

"Gee, is it me, or has it gotten colder?" I asked, shivering.

"Probably just the fog. There are certain weather effects in dungeons." Zach said simply.

As I walked to follow Zach, a hole-or at least I think it was a hole- appeared and trapped my leg.

"Wah! Zach, help!" I yelped, trying to pull my leg.

When Zach saw what my leg was caught in, his eyes widened in surprise.

"You're caught onto stairs!" he exclaimed.

"Stairs? There weren't any stairs when I stepped here!" I argued.

"Cool! You've unlocked the Secret Bazaar!" Zach said eagerly pulling m out and climbing in. I sighed and reluctantly followed.

Secret Bazaar

Vivi's POV

"Hi there! Welcome and Congrats! You've found the Secret Bazaar!" chirped a Kirlia, who was twirling like a top.

"Well? You're the walking encyclopedia. Explain." I said to Zach.

He rolled his eyes but explained it. "A Secret Bazaar is a place where you can only enter accidentally. Like how you're leg got caught accidentally. On the far right corner is Excadrill. He'll dig you a way out of the dungeon. Mime Jr. on the left of us will heal you. On the right is Lickilicky who will clean your items. The far left is where Swallot will give you a surprise grab bag. All of them cost 100 Poke." Explained Zach.

"Hehe! You're certainly very knowledgeable! Enjoy your stay!" giggled the Kirlia.

We had some Poke to spend so we used it on Mime Jr.'s spa. Afterwards we exited and ended up in B7.

Thick Woods B7

Vivi's POV

We reached the end of the dungeon and saw a pink princess like Pokémon floating around anxiously. Once it saw us it flew over to us happily.

"Oh! Have you come to rescue me?" it exclaimed.

"Umm…yes." I confirmed.

"Oh my heroes!" she said dreamily.

I stepped back, a little creeped out by the odd Pokémon.

"She's all yours." I offered to Zach.

Zach placed a paw on the Frillish and pushed his badge thrice while rolling his eyes at me. Suddenly Frillish glowed and disappeared. We also pressed our badges again and disappeared.

Swanna Guild

Vivi's POV

"Oh my beloved!" exclaimed a blue Frillish, racing to hug the pink one.

The pink one warmly returned his embrace, and I felt sick to the stomach. It looks like I wasn't the only one as Zach said, "Okay, um our reward please?"

"Oh of course!" remembered the blue Frillish, handing us a sack full of gummies and 3000 Poke.

As they left, Ms. Leavanny came and took the money out of our paws.

"Hey!" we exclaimed.

Ms. Leavanny seemed to ignore our outburst as she counted the money. She took a whole load off, and gave us 300 Poke.

"Thank you for your hard work! A third of the money goes to Swanna Guild." She said sweetly before stalking off.

We looked gloomily at the remaining money we had until Reuniclus rand the dinner bell and said," Dinner Time!" We decided to leave it and eat. After dinner we settled down in or beds.

"Hey Vivi, why do you like exploring?" asked Zach suddenly, as we stared up to the dim light bulb that lit our room.

"I don't know…I just want to find my past as a human." I answered. "Then what about you?"

"I-I uh just like exploring." Said Zach.

Somehow, I feel like he wasn't telling the truth, but I didn't bother him about it anymore.

"Today was certainly eventful. For the first time, you used Ember and used Dark Pulse." Zach reminisced. "Well Goodnight Vivi."

"_Dark Pulse….when Zach used Dark Pulse and opened his eyes….it was a sick violet color….why? why do I feel like I have seen those eyes before…? It was so familiar…...so…familiar….." _I thought before drifting off to sleep.

**Okay hopefully this chapter was better than the last one. And why do you think Vivi thinks Zach's eyes when using Dark Pulse is so familiar? And do you think Zach's lying? :D It's not the ribbon at the beginning of the story because she said she's seen the **_**eyes**_** before. Feel free to guess. So review and leave an OC! I ****would prefer you leave your OC in a review, but if you can't review for whatever reason, feel free to give me a PM.**


	5. Chapter 5: Team Capture with Team Toady

**Hi guys :3 Okay in this chapter I will be introducing the first OC team I have. If you submit an OC, it will probably be included in the next one. Okay, just before I start the chapter, I would like to say thanks to EpicMusic345, HoneyMan, Makaidos, and clustergod for reviewing and sending me OCs! **

Swanna Guild

Vivi's POV

Once again, our morning is greeted by a flash of blinding light.

"Get up." Blitzle's voice said dully.

"Ugh, how can you make that light so bright?" I groaned.

"I use shock wave and electro ball to make the shade brighter." He said simply, as the light dimmed.

I opened my eyes to see Blitzle walk away. I stood up and stretched, noticing that Zach was still asleep. I sighed and nudged him. When that didn't work, I gently bit him on his ear.

"Ow! What'd you do that for?" groaned Zach, rubbing his ear.

"You wouldn't wake up." I explained calmly.

We walked out to see everyone had already started the cheer. Luckily, no one noticed we weren't there, and finished without any problems.

"Okay Team DarkFlame, today you have quite the assignment!" Ms. Leavanny said, walking towards us.

"Really? What do we get to do?" I exclaimed.

"Well this time, you have to catch a criminal." Ms. Leavanny told us.

"A c-criminal..?" I quavered.

"Yes. But since we were short of criminals to catch, we had to pick the only one. This one is quite adequate, so we have decided to team you up with Team Toady. (OC from HoneyMan)" Ms. Leavanny continued.

"T-team Toady?" I asked.

"Yes. I'll call them here shortly, so until then you should wait." Ms. Leavanny said as she walked away.

"So what do you think of this Zach?" I asked. "Zach? Oh, Zach!"

Zach was sleeping while standing. I sighed and bit his ear harder than I did the last time.

"OW! Rude much?" Zach snapped.

"You're the one to talk! Sleeping randomly!" I shot back.

Just then a Seismitoad with a silver band around his left wrist and a gold one around his right came up and asked, "Are you Team DarkFlame?"

"Ah…yes. Could you be Team Toady?" I asked, slightly startled.

"Indeed. I'm Eugene, the leader of Team Toady. This is Stella, and Buck." Pointing to a Politoed with glasses with a shade of blue mixed in her skin and a Toxicroak with a scar over his left eye wearing a gold chain around his neck.

"I'm Vivi and this sleep addicted guy is Zach." I introduced, motioning to Zach, who was trying his best to not fall asleep.

"So I've heard that we need to team up with you to fight a criminal." Eugene said.

"Yup. Who are we fighting and where?" Zach asked suddenly.

"Oh look who's up. Did you have a nice dream?' I asked sarcastically.

Zach ignored me and all of us went outside.

"Open your Wonder Map. This is where Levacen Town is. And this…is where Cradily, the criminal we have to catch , is. In the Foggy Chasm." Buck said.

"Are you ready? We'll go as soon as we can." Stella spoke in a kind voice.

"Yeah, let's go!" I said eagerly.

We stared to venture towards the Foggy Chasm. Suddenly, I felt a rumbling beneath my feet. I stopped abruptly and looked around.

"_An earthquake….?"_ I thought unconvincingly.

"Vivi? What's wrong?" Zach asked, turning to look at me. Clearly, I was the only one who felt it.

"Are you okay Vivi?" Eugene asked, also turning to face me.

"Y-yeah…I'm fine…" I assured, resuming the walk towards Foggy Chasm.

Foggy Chasm B1-B6

Vivi's POV

"Gah! Why are there so many Kabutos?" shouted Buck, as he swatted another Kabuto off his arm.

Zach and I worried but Eugene just waved it off and Stella simply giggled.

We ran into multiple Shellos and Anorith. We quickly fended them off, but some were still around to fight.

"Mud Shot!" Eugene yelled, wiping out several enemies. The rest quickly scattered. Eventually, a fog rolled through the dungeon.

"This fog is dense…." Murmured Stella, squinting to see through it.

"It's not called Foggy Chasm for nothing. Stick together!" Eugene said in a serious manner.

We decided to share our useful items in case we got separated. The fog started to get thicker than ever. We advanced about three floors, but by then, we could barely see each other.

"Guys? Are you still there?" Zach asked.

Everyone said yes.

"Ohh! This is impossible! We'll never be able to travel together like this!" I confessed.

"…Vivi's right. So we'll split up." Eugene's voice came from somewhere in the fog. "What level are you guys?"

"Uhh...I'm level 10 and Vivi's level 11." Zach said.

"….Buck you go with them. Okay, Stella and I will go one way, and you, Vivi, and Buck go another way okay?' Eugene organized. "If we run into Cradily first, we'll try to hold him back as long as we can. If you guys run into him first, just try your best. You have Buck to back you up as well. Okay then, see you back at the guild, if not sooner!"

"…Okay, do you guys have accessories?" Buck asked after Eugene and Stella left.

We said yes and handed him our scarves. Buck came closer to us so we could see what he was doing. He got out some extra Pecha scarves that he had and tied them all together.

"Okay, I'll hold on to the front of this rope, while you bite it so we won't get lost." Buck ordered.

We agreed and let buck lead the way. I felt a bit guilty about Buck having to lead because he fended off any attacks. We went along smoothly for two more floors.

Foggy Chasm B7-B10

Zach's POV

This was tiring. We had advanced three floors. I couldn't even eat an apple without getting lost. I felt myself feeling faint from hunger. I couldn't talk without letting go either. It was either replenish myself and get lost, or stay with the group and nearly starve to death. I decided to do neither. With a jolt, I bit the scarf as hard as I could and dug my nails into the ground. I heard Vivi give a faint muffled yelp and Buck say, "What's wrong back there?"

"Buck, can we stop _please?_ I'm hungry, and it wouldn't hurt to fill our energy." I complained.

I heard a sigh from in front and Buck's voice said, "Fine. Don't take too long though."

I mentally cheered in my head as I dropped the rope-or pieces of scarfs eagerly and dug into my treasure bag to find food. As soon as I found some, I began munching on it hungrily. I signaled my refreshment done by tugging on the rope. But Buck didn't respond to my tugs.

"Buck! Buck are you there?" I yelled into the fog ahead of me. Silence.

"Hey Vivi! You're here right?" I yelled.

"….yup." came the answer.

"Can you see Buck?" I shouted back.

"For Arceus's sake, stop screaming! I'm only a few feet away from you! But yes I can see him." Vivi's voice said.

"Oh. Okay. Then tell him that we're all ready to rumble." I said more softly.

"Okay." Replied Vivi, and soon, we were on the road again.

Foggy Chasm B10-B11

Vivi's POV

"Buck." I said, the scarf muffling my voice.

"What is it Vivi?" asked Buck from in front.

"Da fog'sh shtarting to get sthinner. Can we let go ofsh da wope?" I asked, feeling the scarf block out my noise.

"Umm…I…suppose." Buck answered.

We both dropped the rope.

"Zach! Drop the rope! It's clearer now!" I yelled to the back.

"Okay." Zach said, catching up with us. We separated it and got back each of our scarfs.

We bumped into a Durant, which scared the life out of me.

"…Vivi. Why are you hiding behind me?" Zach asked.

"….B-bec-cause….I-it….l-look likes a s-s-s-spider! A-and I-I'm deathly afraid of spiders!" I stuttered.

"They're pretty close to your levels. So you should deal with them to level up." Buck said.

"Cool!" agreed Zach, stepping up to the Durant.

"No! Not cool! At all!" I disagreed, backing into a wall.

"Suit yourself." Shrugged Zach, as he attacked with Bite and Shadow Ball, making the Durant faint easily. I sighed in relief and we went deeper into the dungeon.

Foggy Chasm B12

Vivi's POV

"Eugene! Stella!" exclaimed Buck, as they came into sight.

"Ah, Vivi, Buck, and Zach! Did you have any trouble?" Eugene asked.

"Well, we better prepare ourselves for a fight. I heard that Cradily is one tough costumer." Stella warned.

Suddenly, the rumbling I felt earlier came back, and it seemed to affect everyone this time.

"Earthquake!" Eugene roared. We all got under a small opening and hid, in case rocks fell down. Soon, it ended.

"What was that? We don't usually have earthquakes…." Zach mumbled.

"That wasn't an earthquake….it was more like a rumbling created by someone-or something. Not mother nature." Buck said.

"W-well, whatever it was, it's over now, so let's get back on task." Stella said. We agreed and went on.

After we found the stairs, and prepared, we descended down the staircase to face Cradily.

Foggy Chasm B13

Vivi's POV

"It…doesn't look like anyone's here…" I said anxiously.

"He'll show up sooner or later…" Zach reassured me.

"Tee-hee-hee! What's this? Some explorers trying to catch _**me**_?" a voice echoed.

"Who are you? Show yourself!" Eugene commanded.

"Show myself? Show _myself_? Why, I'm right in front of you!" exclaimed the voice as a blinding light overtook us, forcing us to close our eyes. A Cradily appeared in front of us, swaying back and forth.

"Take me in if you can, _dirt!_" spat the Cradily as it lunged towards Eugene.

Eugene quickly defended with a Mud Shot, but the Cradily cleverly twisted its neck around to avoid it. Buck came in with a Poison Jab, and sent it hurdling back into a wall.

"Wrap." Whispered the plant like Pokémon.

All of a sudden, vines, erupted from the ground, grasping our bodies with their snake-like cords. The cords all gripped us viciously, making marks in our skin. Some went so deep, they drew blood.

"Explorers come to get me day after day….So troublesome! Maybe they don't get message that I am undefeatable? Well….maybe they get message if I send back five dead apprentices!" giggled the Cradily maliciously.

I gasped in horror, and started to focus my energy into my mouth again. When I couldn't hold it in anymore, I threw flames at the Cradily and the vine, while Zach discharged a Dark Pulse. When he opened his eyes to reveal that venomous violet color, it sent shivers down my spine. I couldn't help but think that I've seen those eyes before…

The Cradily screamed in pain, and released us. Eugene and Buck charged towards Cradily, finishing him off, while Stella tended to her wounds, as well as ours.

A minute later, Eugene and Buck came back with Cradily, with defeated swirls in his eyes. We transported back to the guild.

Swanna Guild

Vivi's POV

"BZZT BZZT! HERE'S YOUR REWARD! THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPERATION!" the Magnezone and Magnemite buzzed before carrying Cradily off.

"Excellent work you two!' congratulated Ms. Leavanny as she gave us each our share of the money. "Work even harder to become the best…"

"Dinner Time!" Reuniclus called with the ringing of the dinner bell. We all rushed towards the mess hall and ate noisily.

We marched contentedly to our room and plopped down on our hay beds.

"Hey Zach. That rumbling from the ground earlier….what do you think that was?" I asked Zach.

"Hmm I honestly have no idea. We've never had an earthquake, and we're unlikely to have one in the future." Zach replied. "Eh don't worry about it too much. I'm sure it's…nothing….."

I tossed and turned later that night.

"_I know Zach said that it was probably nothing….but I can't help but feel like it really is important….but why? No…I'm just worrying to much…Zach's probably right anyway…..it can't be that important…..can it?"_

**Okay tomorrow (Friday 13) I probably won't be uploading because I won't be here. But I'll get started on the next chapter so I can finish and upload (hopefully) on Saturday. Also…if you're reading and haven't submitted an OC(team) yet….I need more rivals! I can't have this be a happy-go-lucky, easy-going story can I? So please, if you haven't submitted yet, try to submit a rival/enemy please. You don't have to, but it would be much appreciated if you did. Thank you, review and send in those OCs!**


	6. Chapter 6: Clash! Team Nova!

**Sorry for the late update. My Spring Break has ended (sadly) and school has begun yet **_**again.**_** So my updates will be a little slow. Hope you don't mind. Enjoy the chapter.**

Swanna Guild

Vivi's POV

"_N-no! No! Get away from me! Get away! Stop it! Stop!" I was locked in a purple blacked dimension. My clothes were rugged, and I was a human. I was running from someone-something and my heart felt like it was being crushed by a hand from behind. _

"_W-why? Why are you chasing me?" I yelled to my behind. Abruptly, my feet became tangled in a mass of something and I fell down flat on my face-hard._

_A mysterious shadow loomed over me….inching closer to me every minute. A part of the darkness suddenly opened like eyes, revealing a sick violet color. A sick violet color…..? It started to laugh viciously, and a hand of black reached up to grab me. I screamed, my scream echoing into the valleys of darkness and ringing endlessly throughout the dimension-_

"Vivi! VIVI!"

….

I awoke with a start, my heart pounding like I had run for miles and miles on end and my face shining with sweat. Faces of worry surrounded me like the darkness.

"Vivi, are you alright? You wouldn't wake up, and you were tossing and turning like you were having a terrible nightmare or something…." Zach said worriedly.

I sat up slowly, my head pounding as hard as my heart. I did my best to smile and said, "Don't worry. It was just a nightmare! I'm fine! Honestly!"

Many looked at me doubtfully, but some gave in and decided to leave me to be. After the crowd had parted, Ms. Leavanny and Guildmaster Swanna were the only ones left besides Zach.

"Dear, are you sure you can continue with guild activities? I can gladly excuse you from work today…." Swanna offered with a concerned look, but I intervened.

"No, no. Please, it is my duty to do work for the guild. I can't freeload here." I argued lightly.

"That's the kind of stuff I like to hear!" approved Ms. Leavanny. Swanna looked at Ms. Leavanny pointedly, and then sighed.

"As you wish…but please do not hesitate to come to me when you feel something is out of place." Swanna said softly.

I nodded, and she and Ms. Leavanny left Zach and me to peace. Zach was eyeing me worriedly until I spoke.

"Zach, I'm _fine!_ I was just having a little trouble sleeping, that's all." I reassured him.

He sighed unconvincingly and mumbled, "When you feel better, meet me at the bulletin board outside to look for a job…" With that, he walked off, deep in thought.

I had no choice but to leave shortly after him. When I saw him, I rushed over to him until I saw him on the outskirts of a huge crowd. Curious, I decided to see what it was about.

"What's going on?" I asked a Lillipup who was next to Zach and had a look of worry on his face.

"Ah, hello Miss. But anyway, you see those two teams?" he asked, pointing to two groups of Pokémon, one made up of a Scizor, Mawile, Ludicolo, and a Gardevoir who seemed to all have white hats with a black "T" on them, and the other made up of a Flygon, an Electabuzz, and a Milotic who all had a nova red scarf. They seemed to be having a fight.

"The one with four is called Team Titans, they're well known around this place. The other is called Team Nova. They're a bunch of crooks who never abides by the law. Normally, the two groups don't clash with each other like this, but it seems like one of them accidentally did something to the other or something…" Lillipup went on.

"Apologize! How could you push her around like that? She did nothing to you!" seethed the Gardevoir, who spoke in a feminine voice.

"Did nothing? She was standing in our way!" shot the Milotic, who also sounded like a female.

"Ever hear of manners?" spat the Scizor, who seemed to be the angriest out of all.

Suddenly, I couldn't stand it any longer and raced towards the middle.

"Stop it now! Both of you! What you're doing is petty and childish!" I bellowed, making everyone turn their attention on me, including Zach.

"Who're you? This is personal! So get out of it, brat!" sneered the Milotic, looking down on me.

"Personal? From what I hear, someone was just standing there, and you decided to make a fight out of it! Talk about _immature!_" I yelled back at the Milotic, who seemed to glare all the more harder at me.

Just as we looked like we were about to fight, something stopped us. Out of nowhere, a powerful gust stormed through the crowd, making our anger falter.

"This is no way to draw attention!" Swanna appeared from the sky. "You're fellow apprentices! If you're going to fight amongst each other, then do not be in my guild!

Everyone simply gawked at her.

"B-but they-!" started the Electabuzz, but Swanna stopped him with a cold look.

Swanna then flew back up to her guild, leaving an impression on all of us with her icy glare.

"Tch. Whatever. Not like you guys are worth it anyway." The Flygon scoffed, leaving with the Milotic and Electabuzz.

Zach ran up to me after the crowd had dispersed.

"Are you crazy? You could've gotten in _HUGE _trouble for that!" scolded Zach.

I simply waved his lecture off and was about to go when the other team stopped me.

"Thank you for standing up for us." Thanked the Mawile politely.

"We could've handled it by ourselves though." Said the Gardevoir pointedly.

The Scizor rolled his eyes playfully and said, "I'm Devin, the Mawile is Claire, the Ludicolo is Jet, and the Gardevoir is Autumn. We're Team Titan." They all flashed their gold rank badges proudly.

"Hi, I'm Vivi, and this Zorua here is Zach. We're Team DarkFlame." I introduced while Zach was admiring their badges. "Why were you fighting with them anyway?"

"Well, Claire was saving us a spot in front of the bulletin board, and I guess Team Nova wanted that spot." Jet explained.

"Who is Team Nova anyway?" I asked.

"You don't know Team Nova? They're the most notorious criminals here in Levacen Town! There's nothing that they won't steal. They just stole their way to gold rank. Max is the Milotic, Davis the Flygon, and Allen the Electabuzz." Zach said, finally tearing away his eyes from the shimmering badges. "_And_, they're also known for getting exact revenge on anybody who opposed them.

"Yeah, but they're probably just a bunch of rumors they spread about themselves to make them look tougher." Autumn scoffed, waving it off.

"No…it's true…" piped up Lillipup who startled us all. "My big sister argued with them once. Then, when she went on vacation and came back, her room was in shambles! All her valuables that she left behind were stolen. And we didn't even know…."

"They sound like a trivial matter…" I mused.

"Hey! You guys!" shouted Heatmor.

"Oh hey Heatmor. What's up?" Devin asked.

'Y-you got a message! All six of you!" Heatmor panted.

"A-all six of us…?" gulped Zach nervously.

Heatmor nodded and handed us a letter.

_Dear Teams Titan and DarkFlame,_

_Hello! I'm sure we have met before. In fact, we just left our little meeting site now! Anyway, we hate to say this, but, we need to get rid of you pests. We've noticed that you probably won't stop bothering us, so we thought, why not end it now? You six versus us three! And don't worry about fairness because all six of you, wouldn't even be able to handle one of us. Our destination for the fated match will be at the very end of Shadowy Peak. We've cleared the way for you while you're reading this already, so it should be no problem to reach us. Don't run away now! Bye!_

_Sincerely, Team Nova aka. Your worst nightmare._

…

"Okay, _now_ I'm pissed. They think that one of them wouldn't be able to handle all of us? Bullcrap!" seethed Autumn, who looked like steam would come out of her ears any moment.

'Do you think this is some kind of trap?" asked Claire worriedly.

"I don't know, but I think settling it once and for all is a good idea." Said Devin, who was clicking his pincers viciously.

"…..Well, if it is a trap….should _we_ lay a trap just in case, to counter theirs?" Jet asked slyly, with a mischievous gleam in his eyes.

All of Team Titan suddenly smirked in triumph.

"We'll leave it to you then Jet. Don't let us down." Autumn smirked.

"Y-you know I won't!" confirmed Jet, his face a new shade of red.

Claire explained to us that even though Jet may not be the brightest bulb, his tricks and traps were second to none. After Jet had done some planning, we huddled together and discussed our plan. Afterwards, we departed for Shadowy Peak.

"Jet, you know what to do right?" asked Devin.

"No problem. Leave it up to me." Jet winked.

Shadowy Peak B1-B7

Vivi's POV

"Why would Team Nova flat out send us a letter instead of ambushing us?" I thought out loud.

"They probably don't know where were going to go next." Autumn chuckled slightly.

"….They weren't kidding when they said that they had cleared the way for us…." Claire noticed.

Even after five floors, there was not a single Pokémon in sight. It was eerily quiet, even for a dungeon. Only items were found, and absolutely nothing else.

"Or….they paid them to keep quiet so they seem stronger." Thought Autumn out loud.

"Whatever it is, we should just be careful." Devin said as we all nodded in agreement as we advanced another floor.

Shadowy Peak B7-B12

Zach's POV

After we had advanced another three floors we spotted something peculiar.

"A-a Seadra….?" I asked uncertainly.

The Seadra seemed scared and helpless. It looked around constantly, as if it was looking for someone or something.

"H-hey, you!" Vivi finally managed to shout at the youngster.

The Seadra whipped its head at the source of the call and its pupils widened in fear.

"G-gah!" it yelled fearfully before running away.

"Wait! You!" yelled Autumn angrily. She was about to chase it when Devin stopped her with a shake of his head. She was reluctant to obey, but she hesitantly did it.

We advanced another two floors, deciding to focus on our task and to leave thoughts of the Seadra behind until further notice.

Shadowy Peak B12- B17

Vivi's POV

"…Okay, it just seems a bit _too_ eerie and quiet…." Claire shuddered, looking around fearfully.

I nodded in agreement.

"Tch, like we're going to let that stop us. We have to beat Nova up!" Autumn said, cracking her knuckles eagerly.

Devin looked at Autumn hopelessly and led us to the next 3 floors. At B15 we heard something strange.

"_Clack! Clack!_" it rang through the dungeon.

"What was that?" I asked alerted.

"Shh…" Devin whispered, motioning for us to keep our voices down.

"_Clack, Clack! Clang, Clang! Clink, Clink!"_ it continued, the walls echoing the sound back to us.

My new sharp Pokémon eyes caught the flash of metal behind a wall. It disappeared suddenly, as if it could sense me spotting it.

"Can you hear that? It's stopped." Devin said, looking around.

"Okay, this is just_ too_ weird! First, we see a Seadra who's _totally _insane, and then we hear some kind of metal noises that seem to be surrounding us!" Autumn said angrily.

"Okay, we should be just more careful from now on." Zach cautioned.

"As if we weren't from the start." Snorted Autumn.

We then advanced another two floors smoothly.

Shadowy Peak B18

Vivi's POV

"I wonder where Jet is…." Wondered Claire.

"He can handle on his own. More importantly, we're nearing the end. And a beating. _Theirs!_" Autumn snickered.

We advanced another floor, the very end, the place of our match, Shadowy Pinnacle.

Shadow Pinnacle

Vivi's POV

"What's this? Our guests finally decided to show up?" said a voice.

Out came a Milotic, Electabuzz, and Flygon, all wearing the same Nova red scarf. _Team Nova._

"My, oh my. We're missing one aren't we? How sad!" said Max the Milotic in a sickly sweet voice, pushing her bottom lip out in an exaggerated pout.

"We can match just fine without him, thank you." Said Autumn, matching Max's tone.

"Unfortunately, we beg to differ. We recruited some- ahem, _accomplices_." Davis smirked evilly.

Allen suddenly whistled loudly, making a monster house appear! I recognized the Seadra from before, as well as that certain flash of metal from the corner that turned out to be a Klink.

"Oh, crap…." Murmured Zach.

"Where the hell is Jet?" Autumn cursed under her breath.

"Here I am! Sir Jet at your service!" Jet appeared suddenly, jumping from the ceiling oddly, as if he was summoned by Autumn's voice.

"Yeah, yeah that's great." Autumn mumbled sarcastically. "Now, the _plan?_"

Jet winked at us and began to start a rant.

"Wow, being persuaded by some crooks for money or something? That's _pathetic!_" he taunted.

Many of the Pokémon began to growl irritably. They advanced forward threateningly, and when they did—_"Clack!"_

The whole place started to shake and the only one who didn't look confused or frightened was Jet. Immediately, large boulders started to drop. Just as one was about to fall on us when Jet joined us, a telepathic power held it in mid-air.

"_Jet! What the hell is this?"_ Autumn cursed madly, holding her hands up to hold the rocks, and her eyes sending daggers towards Jet.

Jet cringed at the sight.

"J-just wait Autumn!" Jet reassured.

Soon, the shaking stopped. Autumn still held the suspended rocks in mid-air, not knowing what to do with them.

"Y-you guys!" Team Nova yelled drastically.

All of their recruits had been wiped out from the wave of rocks, leaving Team Nova and us behind.

Autumn smirked evilly. She threw the rocks towards them while they were still distracted. It landed a direct blow on them and drew their attention towards us. The Milotic was the first to launch. She aimed right at Claire, who side-stepped just in time to avoid a seething Max. Davis flew towards Devin at max speed, sending him crashing to a wall. Devin's claws glowed steely silver, as he swiped at Davis. Jet assisted with a bubblebeam after Devin's attack somewhat hit Davis.

Autumn literally few towards Max, bloodthirsty to finish what they started in the town. Max countered with a Slam knocking Autumn to the floor. The two engaged in a fierce struggle as Autumn was having trouble getting Max off her as Max twisted her snake-like body around, avoiding Autumn's desperate grips. Max suddenly yelled out in pain as Claire used a vicious bite. Max's bulging eyes flew towards Claire, preparing a mighty Iron Tail. Max was sent hurdling to the wall as Autumn threw a Magical Leaf Max's way. Autumn was covered in bruises and scratches from the struggle earlier, but her eyes glowed determinedly. Max slowly got up, the Magical Leaf taking its toll from being super-effective. Max abruptly closed her eyes calmly and a green orb enveloped her. Her body then gave off a refreshing white color as Max opened her eyes again, looking more confident and pleased.

I was so caught up in the fights; I failed to notice my own. Zach was sent crashing into me by a furious thunderbolt. I quickly got into a fighting position while Zach was recovering and threw myself at Allen. Allen caught me by my tails and used a deathly shockwave, piercing my body with its needle-like thunders. My body felt crisp and crackled with electricity as I struggled to hold up. Zach leaped over me and aimed a shadowy blob at the Electabuzz. He countered with his own Electro Ball. The yellow orb collided with the purple one and created a massive explosion. It sent me flying toward Allen's side of the room. Zach and Allen were throwing many blows at each other while I ran back into the fight. I focused more energy than ever into my mouth, and instead of becoming a short flame, it came out as a shower of flames. I scorched Allen's back, making him cry out in agony. Zach took the opportunity and used a fierce Shadow Claw on his chest. Allen cried out a second time and slightly touched the part where Zach had slashed him in the chest that had ripped his flesh while blood was pouring out. I caught Zach's eye beside him and he nodded at me. I didn't understand what he meant, yet, at the same time I got what he wanted to do. We jumped in the air simultaneously and our tails took on a silver color. We both attacked Allen's head from different directions at the same time as his head got squeezed in by our pressure. He collapsed to the side with a final groan. I felt extremely proud, but my proudness was taken away by a sagging, aching feeling in my tails, forcing me to sit. I struggled to keep my eyes open as I looked around the room.

Zach was panting heavily as he gently touched an injured part of his paw. Max had Clare and Autumn stuck in a whirlpool, and was preparing a Hyper Beam at them. I struggled to get up and help them, but my tails were broken. I realized that they had taken the full effect from Allen's Shockwave earlier. Zach had already gotten up, but was reluctant to make a move to help the others. Suddenly, someone from Devin's side of the fight gave a scream of pain, drawing all attention and distracting Max from her preparation. Devin was on top of Davis, how he got there, I have no idea. One of his claws was gaped and the only thing that separated them was Davis's neck. Jet was trying desperately to calm Devin down, and succeeded. Devin tore his claw away from Devin's neck, but not without releasing a fierce X-scissor that slashed into Davis's chest, knocking him unconscious.

Max noticed her crew's fall, and was looking fearful as Devin and Jet approached her. Devin was heavily injured, and walked slowly, but menacingly, towards Max with one arm limp and the other clutching it. Jet seemed to have taken a heavy toll on one of his foot as he was dragging it across the floor. Claire and Autumn had already fallen unconscious in the whirlpool that still held them prisoner. Max's fear was quickly replaced with menace as she increased the speed and power of the whirlpool, threatening to drown the ones within.

"One more step. One more step from _any_ of you, and these girls here will get what's coming to them." Spat Max bitterly.

Jet and Devin stopped in their tracks, looking worried for the girls. Jet's face was suddenly ashen and he backed away a couple of steps.

"That's right. Back away…." Commanded Max with an anxious gleam in her eyes. As Devin looked at Claire worriedly, he hesitantly obeyed.

"Let me—_us_ through." Snickered Max sneakily, pleased to see her plan working.

With the help of Zach, I floundered out of the way. Max slowly made her way to the opening in the dungeon. With a swoosh, the whirlpool stopped abruptly and Autumn and Claire fell to the ground, their bodies limp.

"Goodbye." Max said maliciously as three separate holes appeared under each of us, swallowing Zach and me in one, Autumn and Claire in another, and one final big hole engulfing Devin and Jet, leaving Max and her crew.

"Wahh!" I yelled as I fell to the darkness.

**Well I hope that it's extra-long to make up. By the way, how did I do for the fight scenes? :D my first time doing any of them really. :/ So….OC submissions are still open. I'll try to get the next chapter out earlier than this one. **


	7. Chapter 7: Going Solo and Meeting Black

**Hey guys! Sorry, i've been busy with tests. Okay, I'll stop rambling now and let you read the chapter.**

Vivi's POV

"Nn…Nn…." My eyelids fluttered open. As I sat up, pain struck my whole body. My head was pounding as if a mallet had hit it countlessly, my stomach churned disgustingly, my paws completely limp, and worse of all, and my tails had no life in them. I cringed and lay down again.

"A-are you okay…..?" asked a shy voice.

I slightly leaned my head towards the door and saw a purple tail which split in two at the end that swayed back and forth shyly. A pair of grey eyes peeked through the door.

"H-hello…." It said in a cute, innocent voice.

"W-who are you…?" I asked, a little too rashly it seems, as the Espeon cowered behind the doorway.

"I-I'm Shirley…." She said shyly. "I-I've been taking care of you when I found you two outside bounds….."

The memories surged back into my mind like a flood. I immediately sat up again, but lay back down almost as quickly with a moan.

"P-please don't strain yourself….the wounds will open up again…." Shirley said softly.

"S-so…you're the one that took care of us…huh? Thanks." I said gratefully, managing to muster up a smile. "By the way, what happened to a group of four Pokémon who all had white hats with a black "T" on them?"

"Ah, I also nursed them back to health, but they insisted on leaving to find a team that goes by the name of "Nova" and they said to bid you farewell." Shirley replied.

At the very mention of Team Nova, my face formed into a scowl, which seemed to scare Shirley a little. I let my face relax and studied Zach. It was obvious he had more damage than me, because of his numerous bandages. I noticed a faint odor that seemed to displease all my senses.

"Ew! Gross, what is that?" I exclaimed, trying to hold my breath in.

"Ah! I'm sorry! It's just that this medicine allows you to move more freely…" Shirley apologized, as she rubbed the strange ointment on my back. "After ten more minutes, it should take effect, along with the smell." I didn't even notice her come in!

After ten minutes, I felt myself feeling more jumpy than ever.

"Wow! I feel great! Is there anything I can do to repay you?" I asked the Espeon, who was smiling brightly at seeing a success.

"Oh, no. I—oh dear!" exclaimed the Espeon after she had opened her kit.

"What's wrong?" I asked, rushing to her side.

"Well, it might not be that big of a deal, but, your friend needs more bandages to replace the old ones, and I'm fresh out of them…" Shirley said worriedly. "I would get some more, but I'm afraid that he'll wake up in pain if I'm not there. In fact, I was watching over you two while you slept, but I crept out of the room when you started to stir."

"Oh, well, no problem! I'll get them! At Monkey Market, right?" I said.

"Would you? Oh, thank you so much! And yes, they can be found at the Market." Shirley sighed in relief.

I rushed off to the market, feeling more energetic than usual and bought some bandages. After I bought them, I rushed right back to the guild. I zipped by apprentices who wanted to ask me things, including Ms. Leavanny. I went to my room and was about to knock when I heard a familiar voice inside.

"Hey….Zach…..who's that girl….? Do you have some kind of special relationship with her…? Even when I longed for you so much?" spoke a familiar feminine voice from inside. I stole a peek through the doorway and saw Shirley talking to a still sleeping Zach. She was stroking his back softly while Zach was snoring lightly.

I don't know why, but her touching Zach so casually made my blood boil. I decided to break her little 'question-and-_no_-answer' session by knocking on the door, more harder than I intended to. She jumped, but quickly gained her composure and said, "Who is it?"

"Hi Shirley! I've got the bandages!" I said chirpily, forcing myself to smile with gritted teeth.

I opened the door to see Shirley more farther away from Zach than before and her paw back in its place in her sitting position, _where it belonged._ Not on _my_ Zach. Wait—did I just think _my_ Zach? Okay, I think the medicine's doing more than just healing me; it's making me go crazy!

"Thank you." Shirley said, putting on a thin smile.

"_Heh. Where's that shyness from just a few minutes ago? Mad I ruined your moment with Zach? Yeah, not on my watch sister." _I thought to myself as I also flashed a fake, yet I hope convincing smile.

She gently took the bandages from me and began to redo the bandages on Zach.

"Oh yes, I never asked your name. A-and your companion's name of course." Shirley said.

"_Tch, don't play dumb, you know his name."_ I thought bitterly, but nonetheless said, "My name's Vivi. And he's Zach."

"Oh, I see. What were you and the other team doing there unconscious in the middle of the outbound anyway?" Shirley asked.

It took some time, but I managed to tell the story to her. I know it was childish, but I couldn't help having an immediate dislike to this girl just because she yearned for Zach. Wait—why should I even care? Clearly, I'm losing my mind. Finally, after what seemed like ages of awkwardness between me and Shirley, Zach started to stir.

"Zach!" we exclaimed in union.

I looked at Shirley, and she blushed and backed off reluctantly.

"My head!" Zach grumbled sorely.

"Zach, are you alright?" I asked worriedly.

"Oh no, I'm fine. I've just got this immense headache with my back feeling like it's on fire, and gut all messed up with my paws and chest feeling like shit. No problem!" Zach rolled his eyes sarcastically.

I looked pointedly at him, and couldn't help but try and play a trick on him.

"You could've just told me Zach….I'm not at my best either you know…." I said faking looking hurt.

Zach seemed to have bought it, because he said quickly, "S-sorry, I just felt really bad and-"

I broke off his apology speech with a fit of laughter. Unfortunately, it added to my pain that the medicine hadn't reached yet, and made my ribs throb viciously.

"That's what you get." Huffed Zach.

While Zach was repositioning himself, I took a quick glance at Shirley. Her eyes looked glassy and her mouth was set in a grim line. She seemed to be frozen in time, and couldn't move a muscle. Finally, Zach noticed my peeking at her, and looked in her direction. His eyes became wide. Shirley noticed and her eyes became misty.

"Zach…." She managed to whimper.

"Sh-shirley!" Zach exclaimed. He looked happy, but confused. "W-what are you doing here? I thought you couldn't be a rescue member."

"I'm not. I'm a healer. Someone who heals the team." Shirley replied, tears rolling down her cheek.

"Oh, Shirley! That's great!" Zach congratulated.

Shirley mustered up a smile through her tears. I felt as if someone had dropped a boulder in my stomach. It felt empty, yet burdensome and heavy. The two continued chatting along, discussing old memories and what happened during their absences, as if I was never there. They talked happily, often breaking out into laughter randomly, and completely ignoring my presence. I figured it wouldn't matter to them whether I was gone or not, so I went out to look for a job. I know it would be irresponsible to go on a job just after I recovered, but anything would be better than listening to Shirley and Zach blabber about things I could care less about.

"Hey Vivi!" chirped a familiar energetic voice.

I turned around to see Petilil standing next to a panting Cottonee.

"Hi Petilil. Who's your friend?" I asked, motioning to the panting cottonball with leaves beside her.

"Oh, this is Cottonee! My teammate and bestest friend EVER!" she screamed out loud.

I winced at her loudness. As usual, Petilil was WAY over the top. Cottonee seemed to blush at being mentioned as Petilil's 'bestest friend ever' but he quickly shooed it away.

"Going on a job? Without Zach?" Petilil gasped loudly.

"Yeah…he's…..reminiscing." I said, forcing a smile.

"Oh. Well, then wish you the best of luck!" Petilil sang as she scooted off.

"Oh, Petilil, not again!" groaned Cottonee as he raced after her.

I laughed softly and decided to explore instead of going out on a job. I got out the Wonder Map and spotted an interesting place labeled; '_Nightly Cave'_ Rumors have it that a mysterious being had chased away outlaws that go there. And anyone who has lost their item in there has found it in front of the strange place as well. It seemed like a ghostly deed. I decided to crack this mystery.

Nightly Cave B1-B5

My stomach had a bottomless feel to it. I had never explored solo before, and the new found feeling gnawed at my nerves. But the very thought of Shirley and Zach laughing romantically alone practically _ate_ my nerves whole. And had me nauseous. I shook the feeling off and advanced another 3 floors.

"_So quiet…."_ I thought to myself. I had encountered very few Pokémon, and all of them were very afraid. My heart quivered in excitement and anticipation in thoughts of the mysterious 'ghost'. Sure, it seemed spooky and scary, but thrilling and exciting as well.

I launched my newly found flamethrower at a nearby Sentret. I checked my stats. I grinned proudly at the '17' written by my level. I advanced another 2 floors.

Nightly Cave B6-B12

I panted as I used up a flamethrower at a Poochyena. I guess I shouldn't use PP too fast.

"Are you….are you an explorer?" someone asked.

I jumped a bit and looked around. I spotted a Gothorita. It nodded politely at me.

"My name is Flare. I'm also an explorer. I came to look for a client….You?" she asked.

"Vivi…I just…wanted to explore the myth of this place." I answered.

"_One, who sleeps all day, yet is watching you. The keeper of Nightly Cave. Phantom that helps, yet does not seek help. A good Phantom…yet has a shrouded heart._ …..That myth?" Flare said.

I nodded in response. Flare nodded back thoughtfully and walked away.

"Well, good luck I suppose." She said dryly as she walked away.

"Good luck to you to." I replied as she disappeared from sight.

I pondered about the myth that Flare had mentioned as I advanced three floors. Suddenly, I spotted a flyer on the ground. Papers were rare in dungeons, let alone a flyer! I picked it up and saw the picture of a Stunfisk labeled with the amount, '5000P + X-ray specs.' I decided to ignore it and advanced another three floors.

Nightly Cave B13

"…..is this it….?" I mumbled to myself, looking around. I had reached the end of the cave. The end was surrounded by water. It had a small opening near the end, but I couldn't see well enough to see what was in it. In fact, the piece of land I was standing on was the only one.

"Glug, glug…"

I looked around hastily.

"Where….where are you looking at…?" the voice asked from below.

I looked down and saw a brown mud puddle like fish crawling up from the water…._Stunfisk!_

"Another explorer come to arrest me….?" It asked.

I backed away fearfully. This guy was worth 5000P! _And_ X-ray specs! Those were pretty rare. I had enough trouble taking down a 3000P outlaw, and that was with Team Toady! It frightened me to think about what a_ 5000P_ outlaw could do to me, _alone!_ All of a sudden, everything seemed to flash in slow motion. One second I'm running away, the next it feels like a fire hose is shooting at my face, and the next, I'm feeling a powerful shock that made Allen's shockwave look like a tickle. I fell to the floor limp the next second. I cringed as I waited for the inevitable. Suddenly, Stunfisk gave a scream of pain.

I opened my eyes wearily to see an abnormal Pokémon standing in front of me. It looked like a Squirtle with a jet black shell and dark grey skin from what I could see. It had knocked the Stunfisk out and was helping me up. I saw that he had pitch black shades covering his eyes. As soon as he was sure I could walk, he started towards the water.

"Hey wait!" I yelled out.

He stopped, but kept his back turned to me and said, "What?"

"I-um…thanks for helping me…" I said.

"….Whatever." he said stiffly.

"Why….are you living alone?" I asked softly.

He sighed and took off his shades and faced me with his red blood-shot eyes.

"Why do you want to know?" he asked coldly.

"I…is it wrong to want to know about the one who saved your life?" I asked innocently, wincing at his attitude.

He laughed icily and said, "You're weird."

My face grew hot.

"Sorry for being weird." I puffed. "But if you're alone, I can offer a home."

He stared at me as if I had grown two heads.

"_What?"_ he asked incredulously.

"I just….don't like seeing people alone for some reason." I mused thoughtfully.

"…Thanks for your worry but…." He trailed off, seeming to consider the thought now. He looked at me doubtfully.

I responded with a sly smile and asked, "Ever hear of Levacen Town?"

Levacen Town- Bulletin Board

"Whoa." The Squirtle said as he stared at Swanna's guild.

A thought hit me like lightning as I asked, "Hey, I never asked, what your name is."

"Black…you?" he replied.

"I'm Vivi. I'm part of Team DarkFlame. My teammate is in sick." I said, laughing bitterly at the end.

He nodded thoughtfully.

"Do you wanna join?" I asked hopefully.

"No thanks. I like going solo. Being in a town is enough for me." He chuckled.

"Okay. But you have to at least make a solo team, and meet some friends!" I said cheerfully.

"F-friends…?" Black asked, a warm blush creeping on his cheeks.

I nodded and started towards my room, Black in tow. I knocked gently on it.

"Zach! Shirley! Are you guys in there?" I called.

"…Yeah, we're in here. Where'd you go?" asked the voice inside whom I recognized as Zach's.

I rolled my eyes at the last part and went in reluctantly. Zach was sitting up and talking with Shirley, who seemed to be keeping a scowl off her face. Zach's eyes lit up when he saw me, but it quickly faded as he saw Black behind me.

"Hey Vivi…who's this…?" Zach asked, unable to keep the suspicion out of his voice.

"This…is Black. He-uh saved me." I stammered.

Zach's eyes narrowed.

"_Saved _you?" he asked incredulously.

"W-well, I was so bored, I went out on a little adventure and ran along some 'problems'." I laughed nervously. "I'm helping him make his own solo team."

Black nodded coolly.

Zach's glance lingered suspiciously on Black, but sighed and gave an apologetic grin towards me.

"Guess I was too caught up with Shirley. Sorry!" Zach chuckled.

I waved it off.

"Well, I better help Black…'" I said.

"W-wait. I'll go too." Zach volunteered.

Shirley's ears drooped.

"Then, I'll be around Town. Bye guys." Shirley sighed.

We exited the hallway and came into the second floor. We knocked on the gargantuan jeweled door.

"…Come in." Swanna's voice came faintly.

We pushed open the door with some difficulty, and saw Swanna resting on a fluffed bed.

"U-Um, this is Black." I said, gesturing to the squirming Squirtle beside me. "He's come to make a solo rescue team."

"Oh? I see. Well then, if that's what you wish." Swanna said politely. "Here, your tools."

Swanna handed the familiar starter box to Black. She recapped her starter speech while Black was examining everything with awe.

"…And that's it. You are dismissed." Swanna said.

We left with Black.

"Hey, Vivi….thanks. You taught me something I should never forget. I'll be seeing you around…" Black thanked me before leaving.

After Black had left, I turned to face Zach.

"Hey, Zach, Vivi." Heatmor said as he approached us.

"Oh, hey Heatmor. What's up?" Zach asked.

"Well, it seems like there's this argument happening in the square. I was wondering if you guys could solve it." Heatmor explained.

"_Argument?"_ I asked myself as we rushed off to the fight.

**Okay, that's it. Not much to say next week is the last chance to submit OCs. I decided that May 5****th**** is the deadline. So send them while you can.**


	8. Chapter 8: Leaving and keys

**Okay, OC submissions are closed. Thank you to everyone who submitted OCs! Also, I WILL be using EVERYONE'S OCs from Dragon's to EpicMusic's. But they will only appear shortly instead of a full chapter because I want to finish this up quickly because my motivation is running away faster than the speed of light. They will only appear for like, a brief moment, if not more. I hope you will understand. Also, it will be a bit rushed, so I apologize for any sloppiness. **

Vivi's POV

Just as we expected, there was a huge crowd gathered around some Pokémon. It reminded me of the time we met Team Titan—and Team Nova. We struggled to get in front of the crowd and saw a huge Nidoking facing a Purrloin. I gasped and tried to stop the fight, but a cool arm grabbed me. I turned around and to my surprise, it was not Zach.

"Don't." a Cubone holding a rusty pipe said simply.

"Um?" I asked.

"Well, that Purrloin is Tori, the toughest one around here. She'll smack you harder than that Nidoking ever could if you mess with her." Explained the Cubone

I looked at the Purrloin, who compared to the mammoth Nidoking looked like nothing but a small helpless kit.

"You sure?" I asked incredulously.

"Move it kid. Unless you wanna get a free trip to Mars!" the Nidoking growled.

"You couldn't even send me to Monkey Market!" Tori spat viciously.

"Oh yeah? You wanna bet on that?" fumed Nidoking.

"I do! If I win, you never show your ugly face 'round here again! If I lose, you getta pound me whichever way you want!" Tori smirked.

"It's a deal!" agreed Nidoking, smiling idiotically.

"Oh, I'm sure alright." Sighed the Cubone.

"I'll be the referee of this match." A Gothorita said coolly. I recognized her as Flare. "This is a duel to see who shall fall first. Both Pokémon shall be allowed to use whatever moves they wish. Audience is not allowed to give advice or cheer or help. They are to stay completely silent. If any of the participant's moves are to hit the audience, they are disqualified. Make sure to take care of not hitting the audience and only hitting the opponent. Once one completely falls and does not get up immediately, they are the loser. Ready? Begin!"

Tori and the Nidoking circled each other like in a sumo or boxing match. But this duel was more than shoving each other or punching. Tori was first to launch with a Bite. Nidoking swatted her off as if she were a fly. Nidoking rampaged at her and began a multiple Stomp. The dust clouded Nidoking's feet, so we couldn't see Tori. When Nidoking was sure Tori was annihilated, he stopped, and the dust cleared up. We were shocked to see no trace of Tori. Suddenly, the ground behind Nidoking began to crumble, and Tori jumped out of it, tackling Nidoking and sending him crashing towards a nearby wall. Giving Nidoking no time to recover, she shot several Shadow Balls at him, making more dust as each hit. Finally, when Tori could fire no more, the dust revealed a defeated Nidoking, with swirls in his eyes. Everyone broke out into cheer and began applauding Tori. Tori simply flicked her neck arrogantly and stalked off towards Flare.

Zach and I rushed towards Tori and Flare, to congratulate her.

"What was that all about Tori?" Flare asked calmly.

"Oh….that Nidoking was just in my way, or vice versa….no big deal." Tori rolled her eyes. She noticed us nearby and gave us a dirty look. She walked over to us and looked at us like we were a stain on her fur.

"Look, I know I'm beautiful and all, but could you stop staring at me?" Tori said snootily, sticking her nose in the air.

I felt my temperature spike up to a hundred, and was about to make a venomous reply when Flare said, "Tori's like that."

I looked at Flare as Tori walked away and asked her, "Are you friends with her?"

"We have a team called 'Deadly Divas'." Flare answered, smiling wearily.

I turned away and spluttered a laugh, desperately trying to make it a cough.

"S-sorry." I apologized, fighting back a smile.

"Tori named it. She's the captain." Sighed Flare.

"Are you happy being in a team with her?" Zach asked.

Suddenly, Flare's eyes clouded and became dusty.

"All that matters….is that we are famous and respected. Whether I'm happy or not…it doesn't matter." Flare said softly, walking away before giving Zach or me any time to comment.

"Flare's weird isn't she?"

"Oh, it's you, the Cubone." I said as a familiar Cubone carrying a rust pipe came up to us.

"Flare and Tori's always like this! They're a weird bunch, if ya ask me!" laughed the Cubone. "I'm Rusty by the way. Who're you?"

"I'm Vivi, this Zorua here is Zach." I introduced as Zach nodded.

"Hm, a Zorua, eh….? Cool! Well, then I gotta go, bye!" cried Rusty as he walked off.

"Well….let's go back to the guild." I said.

_**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**_

"Ah! Zach! Vivi! You're back! Cried Shirley, once she'd seen us entering. "Zach, I think….you should see this." Shirley continued in a grave serious voice.

She began to pull Zach away and said, "Sorry Vivi! I'll be borrowing Zach for a bit!"

I stood there blankly trying to figure out what just happened when a voice called my name.

"Vivi!"

"Huh? What's up Ms. Leavanny?" I asked as I saw Ms. Leavanny coming towards me with two unfamiliar Pokémon trailing behind her.

"This is a new team that just came into town, and since you looked like you had some free time, I was wondering if you could show Team Elements around." Ms. Leavanny explained.

"Uhh sure? I guess…" I mumbled.

After a quick thanks, Ms. Leavanny left.

I quietly observed Team Elements which was made up of an Infernape and a Lopunny. As I guided them, I learned that the Infernape was Christopher and the Lopunny, Hannah. It was cute and quite obvious how they reacted around each other. You didn't need glasses to tell that they were lovebirds. Once I finished their tour, they thanked me and we went our separate ways. I went back to the guild feeling very tired and worn out.

I found Zach at the entrance looking quite dazed and in disbelief.

"Hey Zach, what are you doing out here?" I yawned.

Suddenly an alarm blared. I yelled out in surprise. I quickly ran inside the guild to the upmost floor dragging Zach behind me.

I was greeted by a series of serious and grave faces.

"You're late rookie." Tori spat.

I crinkled my nose at seeing Tori. We quickly assembled in line, and the blaring stopped. Swanna and Ms. Leavanny came out with grave expressions.

"I have bad news everyone…" Swanna said sadly. "But…an apocalypse is coming to the world."

An eerie silence greeted Swanna's world, followed by a chorus of arguments and words of disbelief.

"Calm down everyone!" Swanna ordered. "Everyone….you know the notorious criminal Zephyr, right? The criminal who has tried in many ways to bring the world at his feet."

Everyone nodded in acknowledgement.

"He has created a machine that is capable of truly destroying everything. But he needs a certain key to activate his machine. But he knows what he needs and is searching for it. Therefore, everyone around the world is building certain safe places such as basements. Our guild has one luckily, but we need to stock up. Zephyr announced that he would find his key precisely one week from now, at the same date and the same time. Therefore, I am stopping all guild activities as of today until the attack has subsided. Your only mission will be to stock up with your certain needs, understood?"

"UNDERSTOOD!" everyone yelled out in unison.

"Dismissed." Swanna nodded.

Everyone scattered while Swanna returned to her room. I looked at Zach, who had an unreadable look on his face. H abruptly burst out of the guild.

"Z-zach?" I called after him.

I followed after him and saw him heading out of town.

"Going on a job in this condition?" I broke out to him.

He stopped and said, "I'm not going on a job. I'm going to stop Zephyr."

"S-stop Zephyr? Are you CRAZY? That guy is probably a gazillion times stronger than us!" I cried.

"….I don't care. I have personal matters to settle with him." Zach answered, surprisingly cold.

"Hey! Did you forget that we're a _team_, Mr. Hero?" I yelled.

"What are you implying?" he asked.

"What I'm _implying_ is that if you're gonna go waste your life, then you at least have to let me go with you!" I replied.

He looked over his shoulder at me in disbelief. I stared back confidently. Finally, he looked away and said, "Do what you want."

I smirked and followed up after him.

_**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**_

"How do you even know where Zeph- what's-his-face is?" I asked.

"His name is Zephyr! And he's pretty obvious to tell. He's in the Electronic Open Cavern, of course." Zach said.

"Why there?" I inquired, wondering why Zach would know.

"Because his machine is obviously going to need a lot of open space and electricity to work, other than the key." Zach explained.

"Okay, when were you this observant and smart?" I shot.

"You just don't know me…" he laughed weakly.

_**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**_

**Okay, end. Yes, it's taken a sharp turn. Usually, I like to take longer for things to develop and become more natural before taking such a sharp turn, but as I said before, I'm getting a little low on motivation. Might be another 4-6 chapters until the end. Oh well, better get started writing the rest on what's left of my motivation level…Sorry for any wrong writings, I don't bother to check because I'm in a hurry D:**


	9. Chapter 9: Shadow

**Thank you for your reviews! I will try my best to make the best of what is left.**

_**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**_

"And where are you two going?" asked a familiar snooty voice.

We turned around to see Flare and Tori standing side-by-side. Tori had the usual I'm-too-good-for-you look, and Flare remained expressionless, although she did look a little confused. The evening sun was just behind the two, so we had to narrow our eyes to avoid directly looking at the sun.

"What? Blinded by me?" smirked Tori.

I resisted the urge to smack her as Zach said, "What we do is none of your business is it?"

For some reason…Zach seemed….colder than before. He was more straightforward and rude, not to mention, icy. I didn't like this Zach.

"It _is_ our business. You see, Flare here is apparently your 'friend' so _friends_ should know what you're doing right?" said Tori.

"Yes, you're right, but you see, _Flare_ is our friend, not you. Tori, I would rather face a monster house alone before becoming your friend, or as they are more frequently known, your_ slaves._" I said venomously.

I felt Tori's look settle into a death glare aimed straight at me.

"Nobody asked you, rookie. So you should shut your mouth." She said in a sickly sweet venomous voice.

"Nobody asked you to interfere in our business either!" I countered, feeling my body go hot. I wasn't usually like this, but this Tori girl just _loved_ to provoke me, and it made me furious. Even Zach seemed surprise of my sudden change.

"You know….where _are _you guys going?" piped up Flare.

"Umm…." I said uncertainly, glancing at Tori, who was shooting daggers at me.

"Tori….can you leave us for a moment?" Flare said carefully.

"Whatever, you can tell me afterwards." Tori yawned, walking off arrogantly.

"So….what's up?" Flare continued.

"We're going to stop Zephyr." Zach and I said in union.

I was expecting a gasp or words of disbelief from Flare, but she just stared blankly at us.

"Oh." Was all she said.

"Hey Flare. Could you not tell Tori about this? Please?" I begged. The last thing I needed was Tori yelling at me that we were too weak to take him on.

"Of course. I'll tell her you're just visiting some in-danger relatives." Flare smiled.

I smiled back.

"Well, wish you luck." Flare said before walking away.

I nodded my thanks and we resumed our path.

"Why did you tell her….?" Zach mumbled.

"Don't be such a party pooper. You've really changed ever since the announcement…" I said.

We kept quiet for a while until we heard voices.

"Ahh….where is Levacen Town? Honestly!"

"Am, you should keep your voice down…"

"Yeah Am, what if an enemy is lurking here or something?"

"Oh Ri and Tor, you guys are too wary!"

Suddenly after a quick rustling of some bushes nearby, a Sableye with an earring, a Trapinch with a scarf, and a shiny Deino emerged. Each group froze at the sight of each other.

**.**

**.**

**.**

….Awkward….

"Hey, do you couple know where Levacen Town is?" cried the Sableye.

"A-am! You might be bothering them!" exclaimed the shiny Deino.

"Uhh….no….it's okay…..and umm Levacen Town is that way…" I said uncertainly as I pointed towards the setting sun.

"Oh thanks! See, they're a nice couple. Plus, they look cute together." Said the Sableye.

"O-oh, umm we're not a couple." Interjected Zach.

"Really? Shame. But I'm Am by the way, thanks again!" the Sableye said, bouncing off.

"A-ah! Am! Sorry! I'm Ri. Thank you, and wait Am!" the shiny Deino cried as she raced behind Am.

"S-sorry about those two. I'm Tor, thanks, and bye!" the Trapinch said as he hurried off behind his two friends.

**.**

**.**

**.**

"So, like, what just happened?" I asked Zach.

"No idea…." He mumbled.

We continued along the forest. I gazed among the huge trees. Many of them were towering over us and looked intimidating….but they looked sad. It seemed like the life was draining out of them.

"Hey, Zach, are the trees supposed to look like this?" I asked him.

"….They're not usually like this." He mumbled. "Hey, Vivi. Gather some food that's edible. We should be able to make a decent meal with what we have and what we're going to collect.

"Okay." I agreed.

We both went our separate ways, but stayed within range of each other. I gathered some mushrooms and berries. I returned to see Zach placing down a bunch of herbs and more berries. We took out the rest of our food and made a meal. Quietly and quickly, we ate our meal.

"Hey, Zach, can't we stop for today?" I asked him as I sat on a tree root and gazed at the darkening sky.

"No! We _have_ to get to Zephyr before-!" he began.

"_Zach._ We have a full _week_ until Zephyr attacks." I rolled my eyes.

"You don't know him! He _always_ has something hidden up his sleeve. _Always._" Zach countered.

"And how do you know? What's your connection with him?" I yelled, standing up abruptly.

We both stayed silent. I panted for a few moments, and then turned around.

"Whatever. We don't have time for this. Let's go to bed." I said, but as soon as I took a step, the whole world seemed to turn. I stumbled and nearly tripped over the gnarled tree root.

"Vivi? Are you alright?" Zach asked in concern.

I wanted to answer, but my throat felt raw and bumpy, I started to see everything in slow motion. One second, I'm stumbling all over the place like I've drunk a drink too many, the next, I see everything in twos, and it doubles by the second, the next, I'm seeing the floor, and finally—nothing but black.

_**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**_

It's strange. I wake up to find myself in this strange realm. Everything seems to be distorted, and I'm sure I didn't like it. There were a bunch of images flashing throughout my mind that I didn't understand. I see this huge machine being programmed, and someone screaming in pain. I panicked. It seemed all too real for it to be a dream. As the machine grew brighter, the scream increased in volume. What scared me the most was…that the scream was all too familiar. As I tried to put the puzzle together, more screams followed the original one, a chorus of different voices screaming altogether. It gave me a headache, and I couldn't stand it any longer until a voice called my name.

"_Vivi! Vivi!"_

A light started to emerge at the very corner. I wasted no time reaching it, as I wanted to get away from the screams as fast as I could.

….

I slowly opened my eyes to see Zach looking worried and three unfamiliar faces. One was a Pikachu with green eyes and long bangs that reached her nose. She also seemed to tie her ears back into a low ponytail. On her left was an Oshawott with brown eyes. Finally, across from the Pikachu, next to Zach, was a Riolu, who wore a power band. I stayed there, unmoving and blinking for a couple of seconds before Zach called out my name.

"Vivi! You're okay!" he cried out in relief.

"Umm….yeah….I guess." I said.

"That's good. We were worried when we saw Zach trying to wake you, and you on the ground, unconscious." Said the Pikachu, who sounded female.

"Ah….thanks for helping me…um…" I stammered.

"Aria. I'm the leader of Team Thunder." She introduced.

"Yeah, Team Thunder helped bring you to the nearest center." Zach confirmed.

"Yeah, as I said, I'm Aria, leader of Team Thunder, and these are my teammates." Aria repeated, gesturing to the Oshawott and Riolu.

"I-I'm Dean." The Oshawott said politely.

"Chase." The Riolu said, nodding coolly.

"Hey." I smiled. "So, why did I pass out?"

"Well, you ate a "Fast Action" Mushroom. It's called that because it makes the digester dizzy, and faint really fast." Aria explained.

"Ohh…." I murmured.

"But luckily, its effects also fade as quickly when the victim wakes up as well, so you should be up and at it in no time at all!" Aria assured.

"Thanks for taking care of me, Aria!" I thanked as Zach helped me off the bed.

"You're welcome!" Aria replied.

"By the way, where are we?" I asked.

"Tyker Town." Aria said.

"Oh, I see. Thanks, Aria, bye!" I yelled while I ran off with Zach trailing behind me.

We entered the road and saw a three Pokémon surrounding a lone one. They seemed to be fighting.

"You don't understand. I have to go." Said the lone Pokémon, who looked to be an Umbreon.

"Shadow, it's far too dangerous. If you're going, at least take us with you." The Sneasle said.

"I can't have you involved in this!" Shadow retorted.

"Sneasle….maybe….we should just let Nexas do what he wants…" the Pawniard whispered.

"Stay out of it, Pawniard! No one asked you!" shot the Zangoose.

The Pawniard's face twisted into a glare aimed for Zangoose. "No one asked for _your_ opinion on _my_ opinion either!"

"Pawniard, Zangoose, calm down. You're attracting stares…" murmured Sneasle, stealing a glance at us.

We gulped. The four saw where Sneasle stole a glance and looked in our direction.

"Busted…." I mumbled.

"E-erm, we didn't mean to eavesdrop! Really!" reassured Zach.

Sneasle raised an eyebrow but didn't look offended.

"Oh. I see."

"So, um…" I stuttered.

"I'm Nexas." Said the Umbreon, looking away slightly. "But call me Shadow…"

"Sneasle." Sneasle nodded.

"I'm Pawniard!" Pawniard said chirpily.

"You're so annoying Pawniard! Zangoose…" Zangoose said.

"I'm Vivi, this is Zach." I introduced, pointing to myself, and Zach.

"So, what was going on?" Zach asked.

"Well, this idiot here wanted to stop Zephyr, and we wanted to stop him…" Sneasle explained, jerking his claw towards the Umbreon.

"Shut up Sneasle…he sent bandits on my dad…you wouldn't understand…" mumbled Shadow.

"Oh, is that all?" I interjected.

Everyone turned towards me.

"W-well, if you must know, _we're_ going to stop Zephyr too…and we wouldn't mind taking Shadow along with us…right?" I said, looking at Zach hopefully with my puppy eyes.

Zach sauntered back a little, blushed when he saw my puppy eyes(Nobody can resist!), and nodded reluctantly.

Shadow looked at us in wonder.

"S-seriously…?" he asked incredulously.

"Yup!" I confirmed happily.

He locked his eyes onto mine and began to blush a dark red. He looked away abruptly, murmuring a slight 'Thank you'.

Sneasle nodded.

"I guess I can leave him up to you." Sneasle said. "Thanks."

Pawniard and Zangoose gave their thanks, and started to shoot insults at each other while following behind Sneasle.

"This is great! I think we may actually stand a chance three on one!" I exclaimed happily.

"Hnn…" Zach mumbled as he led us the way to the Inn.

"Huh? Why are we here, Zach?" I asked.

"It's getting late. We'd best set off tomorrow." Shadow explained.

I nodded and we went inside. Slowly, after we settled in a room, we drifted off to sleep.

_**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**_

**Hopefully, it was much better than the last chapter I'll try to write the next one ASAP. **


	10. Chapter 10: Guild's Trouble

**I'd say we still have another 3-4 chapters left before the end! And I WILL make the best out of them! Thank you to ALL my reviewers! XD**

_**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**_

Vivi was abruptly awoken by clattering and clangs of silverware, and unfamiliar voices.

"Brody! What are you doing?"

"Ahh….sorry Grant! I just wanted to prepare some breakfast for the little lady when she wakes up~!"

"You shouldn't do that, Brody. This is an _inn. _And besides, you might wake your little angel up!"

"Will you all shut up? You're gonna wake up Vivi!" shouted Zach.

"You're pretty noisy yourself as well, Zach…." Mumbled Shadow.

"….I….better wake up now…" Vivi mumbled.

"Oh, Vivi, you're up." Shadow greeted me.

"Hey Shadow." I smiled. "Who're those three?" indicating to the Charmeleon, the Sceptile with a huge 'X' shaped scar on his chest, and the Lucario.

"Oh, they're the local….uh…team. Team Destruct." Shadow said.

"Hey! I'm Alistar! Al, for short!" the Charmeleon exclaimed. "The leader! And the Sceptile is Grant, and the Lucario is Brody!"

"Nice to meet you." Grant grunted.

"Why, hello! I'm sorry, if I woke you up; cuties like you need their beauty sleep you know! ~" Brody winked.

"Uh…ahh…no…I'm Vivi!" Vivi exclaimed.

"Brody, stop flirting with her…" Zach stated dryly.

"You're no fun Zach! You've been traveling with a cutie all this time, and you've never once complimented her, did you?" Brody scolded.

"Uhh…well….there might've been—'Zach floundered, trying to remember.

"A girl like her needs attention! Don't blame me if I'm willing to give this angel the attention she deserves!" Brody pouted.

"_I wouldn't say I _need_ attention…"_ Vivi thought but shook it off.

Surprisingly, Zach looked away guiltily.

Grant clicked his tongue. "Zach is too shy to do it anyhow."

"SO, you guys are the local team, eh?" Vivi piped up, attempting to steer the conversation in another direction.

"That's right! We've graduated from Swanna guild, and we decided to settle here! Although, we go to different places for missions! We're gold rank you know!" Al huffed proudly.

"Wow, gold rank? But…shouldn't you be 'heroes' or something? Since you're gold rank and all…" Vivi pointed out.

"Oh, Vivi! That's so lovely of you, to think of us as heroes! Not only a pretty face, but kind as well! Amazing!" Brody swooned.

"Bwahahahaha! No, we get the job done, but we tend to—uh—overdo it a bit, no?" Grant laughed.

Vivi tilted her head. "Overdo it?"

"Yeah! Like destroy everything around us, and stuff! We just get lost in the moment!" Al laughed.

"Oh! No wonder, you're name's Team Destruct!" Vivi said.

"Hmm….hey Vivi, do you think we should set out now?" Zach asked, looking at the early sun.

"Huh? Why so early?" Vivi argued.

"No…I agree also Vivi. It might not be a long journey, but it's gonna be a long fight." Shadow agreed.

"Well….okay, fine!" Vivi huffed.

They bid farewell to Team Destruct and continued their path.

_**Meanwhile….**_

_-Swanna's Guild in Levacen Town-_

"WHAAAAAATTTT? WHAT DO YOU MEAN TEAM DARKFLAME'S NOT HERE?" boomed Ms. Leavanny.

"Ms. Leavanny, if you would just calm down—"Shirley began.

"I REFUSE! HERE WE ARE, WITH AN APOCALYPSE COMING, AND THEY DECIDE TO GO PRANCING AROUND! THIS IS WHY ROOKIES—!" Ms. Leavanny shrieked.

"Sue. Please…._**calm down.**_" Swanna smiled calmly. But it wasn't the kind of warm smile she normally gave off. It was one of those 'I will give you ten seconds for you to shut your mouth, or else I will shut it _for you._'

Ms. Leavanny froze. Normally she would've continued ranting about how they should take action, but this was different. Swanna had used her _first name. Her freaking first name._ _That_ meant business. And that sadistic smile of hers was no joke either.

"U-Umm….Ms. Leavanny, Guildmaster Swanna….if I may say….?" Shirley squeaked.

Swanna turned to Shirley, her evil smile still intact. "Please, go ahead Shirley."

"I-I know the reason for Team DarkFlame's absence…." Shirley said.

"I assume you do. You are after all, Zach of Team DarkFlame's childhood friend." Swanna agreed.

"Yes….The truth is…they went to stop Zephyr."

That zapped Ms. Leavanny right out of her shock.

"WHAAATT? ARE THEY CRAZY? WHAT THE *%&%* ARE THOSE #*%& & KIDS THINKING? I OUGHTA—"Ms. Leavanny cursed.

"_**Sue.**__ Don't. Interrupt. Us._" Swanna spoke coldly, sending death glares that would've killed to Ms. Leavanny.

Once again, Ms. Leavanny completely froze out of shock and fear. Swanna was a good person on the outside. A calm demeanor, with a welcoming heart and considerate and generous personality, Swanna was adored by many. Smart, kind, beautiful and graceful. BUT—AND I MEAN _BUT!_Swanna wasn't Guildmaster for nothing. If you just happen to push one of her buttons too hard, hell would break loose. But Swanna's hard to get mad, for she prefers peace. BUT if someone strikes one a nerve too many, that person would be scarred for the rest of their life. And no one knew this as well as Ms. Leavanny, for she was Swanna's closest subordinate.

"Y-Yes…I apologize Guildmaster….." Ms. Leavanny sulked, bowing her head and sitting down obediently.

Swanna nodded coolly. "Tell, me….how…does Zack know where Zephyr is going to be?"

"You see….Zach's past….it….involves Zephyr more than you think…." Shirley sighed.

**_-1 hour later-_**

"U-Unbelievable! To think Zach had such a past…!" Ms. Leavanny spluttered.

"Indeed," Swanna nodded in agreement, "Zach is probably one of the most unlikely people to be connected with Zephyr that way."

"It was horrible…..but Zach has always endured it in his own way….It pains me….seeing Zach in that state…." Whispered Shirley, the tears starting to roll.

Swanna smiled gently at Shirley, abandoning her evil aura. "You really like him don't you?"

Shirley blushed but said nonetheless, "I would do anything to take him out of his suffering….Nobody understands what he feels…not even me….that's why it's so despicable of Vivi!" Shirley cried unexpectedly.

"Despicable?" Ms. Leavanny questioned.

"Yes, Vivi just comes waltzing into his life, falling in love with him, _expecting_ him to return her feelings, when she doesn't even know an ounce of his pain! If you're lovers, you should share the burden! You should know each other's pain and suffering! But she knows nothing—_nothing!_" Shirley nearly shrieks.

Swanna gently placed a wing on Shirley's paw.

"Guildmaster?" Shirley frowned.

Swanna shook her head slightly.

"No. Lovers…have their own pain and burdens. There is no one in this world with no burdens. It is not knowledge that makes up a relationship. It is _trust._ If your lover has pains of their own, you should _trust _them that they know how to take care of it. It is not sharing your burdens, but taking care of your own on your own. And you must trust them….to not leave you for another." Swanna smiled, tears running down her cheeks.

"Guildmaster….no—Swanna." Ms. Leavanny murmured.

"Oh dear, look at me…I'm sorry it's just that—my lover left me for his work…I didn't know what went wrong—He just—" Swanna stopped, breaking out into short hysterical sobs.

"Swanna….don't worry about it….he was an ambitious freak anyway…he didn't deserve your love…" Ms. Leavanny comforted Swanna, hugging her and patting her on the head.

"Guildmaster…to bring up such a horrid topic for you…I'm sorry! I will go with all my power to bring them back—!" Shirley decided.

"No." Swanna wiped her tears. "_I _will go. They are _my _duty. I will protect them no matter what…"

Swanna stood up abruptly. "In my absence, I offer Sue Leavanny in my place. Take care while I'm gone." Swanna climbed to a window and fluffed her wings.

"Guildmaster!" Ms. Leavanny and Shirley cried simultaneously.

"Don't you _dare_ follow me. That is an _order!"_ Swanna declared, spreading her wings in the sky, taking off at incredible speeds.

"Guildmaster—no—_Swanna!" _Ms. Leavanny cried.

It was only a matter of seconds before Swanna disappeared from sight.

"No—No! That Swanna….what is she thinking? She's no match for Zephyr! It'll only make things harder! I have to stop her! Or at least help!" Ms. Leavanny cried frantically, rushing out of the guild.

"Ms. Leavanny! What are you doing? Guildmaster Swanna is strong right? She can at least hold Zephyr off, right?" Shirley cried, racing after Ms. Leavanny.

"You don't understand Swanna! She's always….always….doing things on her own…I have to help somehow!" Ms. Leavanny exclaimed.

"But how? Guildmaster's flying rate is amazingly fast! With any luck, she might arrive before Team DarkFlame to hold back Zephyr!" Shirley shouted.

Ms. Leavanny skidded to a sudden stop. "No. Swanna….at full power can indeed hold Zephyr back. But…she cannot summon her full power against him. That is for Swanna and I to know, and no one else. And yes, Swanna's flying speed is incredible, but….there is someone I know whose flying rate can scrape the very back of Swanna's."

"Who?" Shirley panted.

"Come with me."

_**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**_

"Well, well, well….look what we have here….I thought you didn't care for us anymore….what brings you here, Right-hand Ms. Leavanny?"

"I need you to take me to the Open Electronic Cavern. I'm a Leavanny, so I'm very light. You should be able to take me right?" Ms. Leavanny said determinedly, stepping up to the shadows.

"Wait. Ms. Leavanny, if it's possible, may I go too?" Shirley piped up.

"What? Shirley, you're just a rookie! It's much too dangerous—" Ms. Leavanny debated.

"I want to go! I want to be by Zach's side….so I can help him in his hardest times…because _I _understand him." Shirley stated.

Ms. Leavanny peered into Shirley's gray eyes, bursting with determination and stubbornness. Finally, Ms. Leavanny sighed, tearing away her gaze.

"_Swanna….when did the kids grow so strong?"_ Ms. Leavanny thought to herself as she spoke.

"Fine. But do not cause any trouble on the way."

Shirley smiled gratefully and bowed.

Ms. Leavanny turned back to the shadows.

"I'm light, and she's small. I assume you'll be able to carry us."

The figure laughed. "Indeed, I am. But tell me, why should I help you to reach your precious Guildmaster?"

Ms. Leavanny stepped forward as she narrowed her eyes. "You're a very wanted team out there. Especially to Team Titian, you know…And I can prevent anyone from doing anything to you. Because I have authority. If you help us now, I can ensure your safety forever. Unless….after you help us…..and you continue to steal things, I can no longer ensure your safety. It's not just you. I can help your whole team. How about it?"

The figure frowned. "You're a smarter lady than we thought. Fine. I'll go. But you better keep your promise. And we won't guarantee that we won't steal things afterwards."

"Fine with me. But just know this. You have no benefit of betraying us. And it's up to you whether you decide to keep stealing after this or not. But if you do….you're on your own." Ms. Leavanny smirked.

"When do we embark?" the shadow asked.

"As soon as we can. We'll meet you at the forest at 4:00." Ms. Leavanny said.

The shadow grunted an 'O.K'

"Remember to meet us on time, your team's safety depends on it…."

Ms. Leavanny and Shirley exited the huge hollow tree. As they were walking back to Levacen Town, Shirley started a conversation.

"Wow Ms. Leavanny, you sure were sharp back there." Shirley admired.

Ms. Leavanny blushed a little and looked away. "I….used to be a police officer…." Ms. Leavanny confessed.

"I'm not surprised." Shirley smiled.

"But when I met Swanna and she offered to make me the right-hand, I couldn't say no." Ms. Leavanny sighed.

"And Ms. Leavanny, who will take care of the guild?" Shirley asked.

Ms. Leavanny smiled reassuringly. "I'm sure the guild is more than capable of taking care of itself."

Shirley nodded in understanding. The walk was continued in a peaceful silence.

_**At 4:00 in the forest….**_

"Good, you're here."

"Of course, my team's safety depends on it." He growled.

Ms. Leavanny smiled. "Nice to know you can cooperate, Davis of Team Nova."

The figure finally stepped out of the shadows, showing indeed, Davis of Team Nova, with numerous bandages.

Shirley frowned, remembering the name of Team Nova, whom was mentioned by a grudge-holding Team Titan when she had taken care of them.

"Get on." He scowled.

As Shirley and Ms. Leavanny shifted on Davis's back, he took off with surprising speeds.

"_Swanna…."_ Ms. Leavanny thought as the winds whipped by her, "_I won't let you throw yourself away again."_

Shirley looked onto the horizon. "_Zach….please wait for me. Remember my feelings….Zach….I won't let you endure this alone."_

But no matter how different their thoughts were, Ms. Leavanny for Swanna of friendship, and Shirley for Zach of love, they were currently thinking the same thing: "_You're not alone!"_

_**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**_

**I really enjoyed writing this chapter! I loved writing the dramatic scene between Swanna, Ms. Leavanny, and Shirley. I think I've found my love for writing dramatic scenes! :D I'm thinking of adding a flashback too….but I'm not sure of what I'd like to make if of. Swanna and Ms. Leavanny, or Zach and Shirley. I can't write Zach's past just yet, since that's to remain a secret, but you'll know at the end. Ok, see you in the next chapter.**


	11. Chapter 11: Shirley's Unknown Sight

**I've decided to do the Zach and Shirley's past first, and then Ms. Leavanny and Swanna's past at the very end. You'll see why. ;) And I'm unsure whether most of you read the last chapter or not. Since I took out the announcement, it might not have showed that I updated. :I but if you didn't then go read it now! Or else you won't understand xD and that's no fun! If you did, then when you have time, drop a review, it makes me happy ;).**

**!WARNING!: Flashback might be VERY long. I'm talking 1 chap long. Hopefully the Swanna and Ms. Leavanny flashback will be shorter. But even if it isn't I guess that just makes for a longer story :'D**

_**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**_

Shirley looked onto the horizon with misty eyes. The wind was ruffling her fur, as she stood on the back of Davis, the Flygon, and the leader of Team Nova while Ms. Leavanny sat beside her. The thought of Zach seeing her there made her smile in excitement. But then came another thought—Vivi. Now, it wasn't that she disliked Vivi or anything, she truthfully thought Vivi seemed like a nice girl if she didn't let jealously get the better of her. It's just Vivi's actions that made her despicable. Vivi thinks she can break the bond between her and Zach so easily? I beg to differ! Besides…if Zach was asked to choose between his new-found partner, Vivi, or his long childhood friend, Shirley, he would surely choose her….right?

_-Flashback- (Shirley's POV)_

"_Hey Shirley, did you see that new kid?" My friend Beatrice the Beautifly asked me._

"_Hm? Beatrice, who are you talking about?" I asked. It was back then while I was still an Eevee._

"_The transfer kid! What's his name? I think it was Z—Zammy! Or something like that…I heard he was a Zorua! Weird isn't it—" _

"_I don't appreciate people gossiping about me or my species behind my back." A voice said coolly._

_Beatrice and I turned around to see a Zorua, looking at us rather coldly._

"_My name is Zach, by the way." The Zorua said. "Remember that."_

"_You don't need to be so cold…." I murmured._

_The Zorua raised an eyebrow. "Excuse me?"_

"_You don't need to take you your coldness on Bea like that! You can just say it normally….or ignore us if you want to!" I exclaimed._

"_Well," he began, his words dripping with sarcasm, "Excuse me for my coldness."_

_The Zorua walked away without another word._

"_Oooh! He makes me so mad!" I huffed._

_Bea laughed. "You guys seem like you've been friends forever!"_

"_What part of our relationship screams 'friends'? It's more like 'I can't stand you!' to me!" I fumed._

"_Don't be like that! For all we know, you two might get out to be very good friends! After all, we've just found out that you two are very compatible with each other!" Bea laughed._

"_Oh, Bea! Just when I was trying to defend you…" I pouted._

_Bea simply laughed as the bell rang and we walked to class._

"_Class!" our teacher, Mrs. Medicham giggled, "We have a new student! Please welcome him!"_

_The class stayed silent as Zach walked in, glaring at many._

'_Oh, isn't he cute?" One of my classmates, Gloria the Glameow purred to her cronies, Verona the Venonat, and Carla the Cherubi._

_I rolled my eyes. Just like Gloria to be all over a new student before she even knew his name. _

"_Please, introduce yourself!" _

"_Zach…" the Zorua grumbled._

"_He's the grumpy shy type it seems." Gloria winked to her followers, who giggled in sync._

"_Okay, Zach-san! (Mrs. Medicham originated from Japan) You can sit in between Shirley-chan, that's the Eevee, and Gloria-chan, the Glameow._

"_Thanks teach." Zach said, forcing a smile._

"_Oh, call me Medicham-sensei! Or just Mrs. Medicham." Mrs. Medicham smiled. _

_He hesitantly sat in the seat between me and boy freak. Zach and I tried to keep from scowling at each other while Gloria could be seen emitting hearts and her cronies praising her._

_It was a long few hours until the teacher finally said, "Okay, recess!"_

_I rushed to Bea and we went outside. _

"_Kyaaaaaa! Lady Gloria, we're so jealousss!" Carla and Verona exclaimed in union._

"_Now, now, if one of us has the chance to be with Zach, it might as well be me!" Gloria said proudly._

_Zach passed by them and ignored their swoons. He walked right past the gate._

"_Oi, look Bea! What does he think he's doing? That crazy cold maniac!" I cried, rushing after him, forgetting about Bea._

"_Hey! Where do you think you're going?" I cried, rushing in front of him and blocking his path._

_Zach simply ignored me and walked around me._

"_HEY! Is that how you treat someone who's trying to think of you?" I growled._

_Zach immediately stopped and turned around. "Someone who's thinking of me?" He laughed coldly, "There isn't anyone who exists like that in the world. _

"_Huh? What are you talking about? You talk like caring and kindness doesn't exist!" I shouted angrily._

"…_It doesn't. At least…not in my world." Zach breathed, continuing to walk around me._

"_What nonsense are you spouting?" I shouted._

_Zach stopped in front of me._

"_What world? We're all living in the same world here, so shut up and stop thinking about yourself! Does 'your world' only include yourself? Get back to reality!" I ranted. I began to pant, I was out of breath._

"_I think you're the one who needs to get back to reality….Living in the same world….Ha!" Zach spat. "Tell me, have we lived in the same environment? Lived in the same circumstances? Do I know what you've been through up until now? Know what I've been through up to now?"_

_I staggered backwards. "W-Well, I don't…." I spluttered. "But that's what friends are there for now!"_

"_Enough of your foolish nonsense. And get back to 'your world'." Zach mumbled as he walked into the deep dark forest._

_I growled irritably. Just who does that guy think he is?_

"_WAIT JUST A MINUTE!" I boomed unexpectedly. _

_Zach, once again, stopped. He sighed irritably._

"_What. Do. You. Want?" He snapped. _

"_I. Want. To. Go. With. You!" I said._

_He glared at me as if I had grown another head or something. _

_He narrowed his eyes. "You're kidding. Right?" _

"_No, I'm not, sherlock." I sang as I followed him._

"_And, why. The hell would you want to follow me?" Zach snarled, his patience reaching its limit._

_I smiled mischievously. "Because, if I follow you, I can eventually see where you're going!" I chirped._

"_This woman…" Zach snarled._

"_I'm not a woman. I'm a girl. Come now, I can only see where we're going when you're leading." I said._

_He scoffed incredulously and resumed his walk._

_I smiled. Along the way, I kept teasing him and unexpectedly found out that he was just a tough cookie! I saw how soft he was when we stopped to treat an injured wild Pidove. I don't know how, but along the way, I think we became friends. I was actually having so much fun that I failed to notice the sudden change of atmosphere. But it didn't seem to slip past Zach. His face suddenly hardened._

"_Shirley." He gathered my attention._

"_Hm?" I acknowledged._

"_Go back. Now." He ordered. His voice was anxious and tense. _

"_Huh? What're you talking about—"I asked, before I was knocked to the floor by a huge sound wave. _

_All of a sudden, the most horrible noise filled my ears._

"_AAAAAAAAHH!" I screamed in pain. My head…! It hurts…! MY HEAD…..! "UAAAAHHHHH!" I kept screaming._

"_Shirley…!" Zach gritted his teeth._

_Why? How come Zach was fine? How come I could hear his voice clearly? _

"_Make it stop…Please…! MAKE IT STOP ZACH!" I shrieked, digging my claws into my ears._

"_You brought an outsider. How could you?" a voice echoed._

"_I'm sorry." Zach said._

"_Sorry? You've ruined it! You have to take the full brunt of the punishment." _

"_Yes…." Zach complied, closing his eyes._

_What…? A huge whip was lurching towards Zach mercilessly._

"_ZACH!" I screamed._

"_FFWWHHIIPPP!" the sound of the whip brutally ripping its target could be heard. But…its target wasn't screaming._

_Zach opened his eyes._

"_SHIRLEY!" Zach shouted, leaning towards the bloody Eevee. My stomach had a huge gash in it and blood was leaking out at a dangerous rate. My stomach felt like it was on fire, with my insides burning up._

"_Shit, boss! You hurt an innocent child!" another voice cried._

"_Tch. We'll meet again soon Zach. For now, take care of that girl." The sharp atmosphere suddenly evaporated along with the ringing in my ears._

"_Shirley…." Zach cried. "Why?"_

_I smiled wearily. "I'm…so happy….you weren't hurt Zach. So….happy…." _

"_Why? WHY?" Zach cried, letting tears cascade onto my cheek._

_Suddenly, I was enveloped in a white glow._

"_Shirley…? Shirley!" Zach said frantically._

_Zach saw what took the Eevee's place. An Espeon. _

"_Shirley…" Zach gasped. "You evolved…!" _

_He looked at my wound. "I-It's a bit smaller!" _

"_Zach…" I whispered, letting tears roll down my cheeks. "I was so scared….so scared….for both me and you…" _

_Zach wound me up into a tight hug. "I'm sorry. This all my fault. I'm sorry. I won't ever let it happen again." _

"_I'm scared Zach…will I die? I'll die won't I? I don't want to die yet Zach…I'm scared of dying Zach….help me…." I whispered._

_Zach carried me on his back and ran back to the school as fast as he could. I was treated immediately, and it took a full month to fully recover. We got brutal punishment for breaking rules, but in my opinion, we got off easy. _

_**4 months later….**_

"_Z-A-C-H~!" I sang, as I burst into the classroom. "Huh? Zach isn't here?" I asked my friend Bea._

"_Nope. But anyways, you two have certainly gotten a little closer, huh?" Bea raised an eyebrow and smirked._

"_W-Wh-What are you talking about….? Anyway, where is he?" I spluttered, while blushing._

"_Park." Bea giggled._

_I thanked her and went on my way._

_Sure enough, there was Zach sitting on the steps of a slide. _

"_Zach…?" I shyly asked. _

"_Hmm?" Zach responded_

"_How're you doing?" I smiled._

"_Fine." He answered._

_I sat down next to him. "Hey Zach, I… am going to take up being a doctor." _

_He looked at me. "I thought you wanted to be an explorer?"_

_I nodded in confirmation. "I did. But, I've got to thinking, I'm weak. I could've easily stopped his attack __**that time….**__ But I didn't. So I want to at least help the injured." _

_He smirked. "Well, you wouldn't have to worry about fighting anyway." We looked at each other. "'Cause I'll protect you."_

_I smiled and blushed warmly. "Then….I'm counting on you….Explorer Zach."_

_-End of Flashback-_

Yes….he always had protected me until he had to leave. Or all those other times he had defended me, I will finally, get the chance to return his favor. There is no way, Vivi could understand this feeling. I've always wanted to free Zach…from those ties that bound him. If I wasn't incredibly happy that day for protecting Zach, I wouldn't have evolved. And if I hadn't evolved…..I don't think I would have survived. And, unknown to Zach, I've seen it. The one who that voice belonged to that time. I must free him. It is a job only I can do. And no one will stop me!

_**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**_

**Yeah, it ended up being a whole chapter… :I well, I know I like, fast-forwarded on some parts, please forgive me! But that was just to move things along, you know? :D and if you're a really curious one, and want to know what happened in full detail, just use your imagination. It's not that hard! :P And personally, I like the past Shirley and Zach better than the current ones, LOL XD. Review! Then, until the next chapter, Bye-Bi! **


	12. Chapter 12: Zephyr, The Truth

"….Vivi? What's wrong?" Zach asked me, as he stopped and turned around. We were walking towards the Open Electronic Plains as I stopped and suddenly turned around.

"….No, nothing…" I mumbled, shaking off a nagging feeling. Ever since a little while ago, it seemed like something was pulling my heart in the opposite direction I was headed towards. As if it was trying to stop me.

"Are you really sure you're alright, Vivi?" Shadow inquired, staring at me worriedly.

I gave an unconvincing smile as I tried to wave his concern and the worrisome feeling off.

_**30 minutes later…**_

"Are we there yet?" I groaned, my feet killing me.

"No." Zach replied simply, as he did for the past 10 minutes.

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet?"

"No."

"Are we there yet?"

"Yes."

"Are we—what?"

Zach stopped me just as we reached a huge opening.

"….This is a cave, Zach." I said.

"It'll lead to the plains soon enough." Zach said.

"I suspect it would." Shadow cut in.

I shrugged, and we went in. As Zach and Shadow said, we arrived at a yellowish-greenish field. The grass was so long and prickly, it tickled. As I swept my eyes over the horizon, I could find nothing.

"Where is that Zephyr….?" I mumbled looking around. "Hey Zach, do you have any idea…." I looked over to Zach.

He had a shadowy, guilty look on his face. I stepped closer to him. I peered closely at his face curiously.

"Zach…?"

Male laughter suddenly sounded throughout the plains. Shadow and I immediately were alert. But Zach didn't have seemed to move an inch.

"Bravo, bravo!"

Shadow and I jerked our heads towards the sound. It was a male Zoroark clapping, standing in the middle of the plains like he was there all along.

Shadow immediately gritted his teeth and got into a fighting position. "Zephyr!" he spat disgustedly.

Zephyr gave off a sneaky look in his eyes. "I must commend you. Knowing how to get here. Lovely job! I do like kids with spunk these days." He chuckled.

"Quit with the act, Zephyr!" I growled. "We know your attempt to take over the world."

Zephyr eyed me. "Hmm…so you're Vivi huh….?" He studied me quietly and then grinned widely. "They did a wonderful job of getting you here. You look lovely my darling."

I fought back a blush as I growled at him. "Q-Quit it! Anyway, where's your machine?"

"Ah, so you really do know I was planning to take over the world!" Zephyr chuckled. "But, you have done me the greatest wonders by coming here."

Shadow and I shared a puzzled look.

"For you have brought my key to me." He grinned mischievously.

I had a sinking feeling in my stomach as I shouted, "Shadow, Zach, bring out all our stuff, now!"

Shadow opened his mouth to ask, but as he saw the demanding plead in my eyes he stopped and brought out all the stuff he was carrying. Zach also followed suit.

As Shadow opened his mouth to question me, I launched a fiery flamethrower at the bags, setting it on fire. Shadow simply stared at the fire dumfounded. Zach remained unfazed.

"Vivi!" Shadow yelled. "Why did you do that?! How do you expect us to survive the journey back?!"

"We may have Zephyr's key in our stuff! We need to get rid of it!" I explained. I snuck a look at Zephyr to see his reaction, but his eyes were simply glinting with amusement.

"My, you have more brains then I expected!" Zephyr laughed. "But no." Zephyr's eyes twinkled with excitement. "My key was not in your supplies."

I backed away incredulously. "You…..you liar then! We don't have your key!" I mentally hit myself for being so naïve as to fall for a lie.

Out of nowhere, a huge machine rose next to Zephyr. In a snap, Shadow and I found ourselves in cages.

"Wha—?!" I gasped, looking at the iron bars that suddenly imprisoned us.

"No!" Shadow cursed. "We walked right into a trap!"

"No! This is bad!" I gasped, twisting around to look at Zach, he had been awfully quiet, but even he couldn't remain calm in this situation!

But Zach wasn't imprisoned. I felt a glimmer of hope spark inside me.

"Zach!" I cried in relief. "Thank god one of us is out! Help me and Shadow out—"

"No."

My smile faded as I furrowed my brows in confusion.

"Zach?"

He looked up, his eyes accepting and cold.

"No." he choked out.

Zephyr's chuckles rang through the hopeless silence.

"What….do you mean….?" I croaked, my throat becoming thick with emotions.

"No." he said again, slowly walking to Zephyr. "I'm done with my role with you. My role is done."

Zephyr patted Zach's head proudly as Zach stood beside him. "Good job, boy. I knew you'd make your daddy proud."

I stood there shocked, as I made the connection. I mentally slapped myself for not realizing it earlier. Zach was a Zorua. Zephyr was a Zoroark. How could I have not realized it earlier?! Of course, just because there is a pre-evolutionary child and the evolutionary adult doesn't automatically mean they're related. But Zoruas and Zoroarks were rare, so they had to be close relatives in some way.

Hurt and tears clogged my throat as I choked out, "You….were on his side the whole time….?"

Zach looked away, refusing to meet my gaze. "Even before I met you."

Shadow was unable to say anything, shocked to the bone.

Zephyr took a distracted glance at a timer on his machine, and his eyes lit up automatically.

"It's time!" Zephyr eagerly clapped his hands, and suddenly, Pinsirs surrounded my cage.

"Wha—what's—?!" I gasped, confused on where to back up.

One of the Pinsirs used his pincers to cut open the iron thick bars. I was confused. I didn't notice the back had also been cut and suddenly, a pair of spiky pincers grabbed me from behind. I wriggled around miserably, wincing when the points dug deep into my skin when I moved too violently. Suddenly, I remembered my fire type moves would be super-effective to their bug types! As I inhaled deeply, Zephyr stopped me.

"Not so fast." I stopped to glare at him. My glare quickly vanished as I saw one of the Pinsirs had his horn pincers around Zach's neck.

"_Zach!"_ I gasped.

"You so much as spout out an ember, and I'll have this boy's head rolling around." Zephyr grinned maliciously.

"You would kill your own _son?!"_ I screamed despicably.

Zephyr shrugged, uninterested. "I'm a master of illusion. I can just dress up as some gentlemanly Pokémon and steal some woman's heart and create more offspring." Zephyr adopted a dark gleam in his eyes. "Many parents may thing that their children are their pride and joy, but _I _believe my children are mere tools for me."

Anger flared up in me as I gained more strength and squirmed more efficiently.

Zephyr's eyebrows furrowed. "Did you not hear me?" The pincers clasped more tightly around Zach's throat and he let out a little choke.

I stopped immediately but I yelled out again louder than ever, "ZACH! ARE YOU JUST GONNA SIT BY AND LET HIM TOY WITH YOUR LIFE?! YOUR DAD?! DO SOMETHING ZACH! I STILL WON'T ACCEPT THE FACT THAT YOU'VE BEEN ON HIS—_HIS _SIDE ALL ALONG!" My eyes started to become glassy no matter how much I wiled them not to.

Zach's face shadowed as he murmured loud enough for everyone to hear, "I am but a tool for my father. My life belongs to him. What he does with my life has nothing to do with me."

I blinked furiously as I tried to make my tears come back, but I couldn't help muffling a sob as they spilled over fiercely.

"Have you gone _mad?!_" I whispered fiercely. "It is _your _goddamn life, Zach! Just—please—_please _go back to the Zach that I used to know!" My tears ran down freely. "I hate this Zach."

Zach seemed to freeze and his eyes went back to the kind Zach I once knew, but it disappeared just as quickly as it appeared.

Shadow growled and reached through the bars, trying to slice through.

I silently sobbed as I was brought closer and closer to the machine. I knew what was probably coming to me; Zephyr probably would do away with me, and then Shadow. But I was just glad it was me first. Shadow didn't deserve to be brought into this…..Zach probably intended it for me…

Zephyr grinned widely as he saw I was already broken, and released the hold on Zach. With a grubby claw, he jerked my head to look directly into my blurry eyes.

"I'll tell you something good." He grinned. "I won't finish off your little Umbreon friend over there." He jerked his head towards the silent Shadow, looking hopeless and deflated.

"I'll only make him my minion." He chuckled, ignoring the furious look on my face. I chewed my lip to prevent myself from saying something that might get one of us killed.

Zephyr widened his malicious grin. "I'll tell you something else too. I did bring you here to kill you. But more as to…._sacrifice _you. Since you're my lovely key after all."

I widened my eyes. "W-W-What?!" I spluttered.

His eyes glimmered. "That's right. My key needed to be someone. And that someone had to have certain qualities to be my key. And wouldn't you like to know not one Pokémon in the world fit the description! So, I turned to the human world. And guess what? I found the perfect fit."

"….Me?" I choked out.

"Correct!"' he snickered. "I had my top professors built a machine to change you into a Pokémon, and then I had Zach befriend you. When you grew strong, and fit enough to become my key, I took hold and announced my plan!"

He laughed at my horrified expression. "Everything has gone _precisely _to my plan! Except," his eyes swept over a paralyzed Shadow. "For that tag-along." He shrugged. "But that doesn't mean anything. Just another slave I'll gain. He was bound to come to my control sooner or later when I took over the world."

I used all of my strength to not spit in his face as I bit my lip until it bled.

Zephyr looked at me pitifully. "I hate to see your pretty face get damaged, but luckily the sacrifice will swallow you whole, but slowly, so sorry for that, dear."

A slot opened up in the machine and it now had a small Pokémon-sized gap in it, bubbling with lava. I looked at it fearfully. My eyes bugged out as the Pinsir came closer and closer to the lava gap.

I let out a strangled cry as my back brushed over the lava.

"_**NO!"**_

Like a whirlwind, Swanna came unexpectedly in a whoosh. Swanna?! I was completely unable to comprehend what was going on, and so were the others.

"Shirley has told me what has happened." Swanna smiled apologetically, looking over at Zach, who bit his lip and turned away, holding a guilty face. She turned to face Zephyr.

"I knew it. Zach was on your side all along. I had only confirmed it when Shirley told me. But it still seems a little surreal to me." She glanced at Zach and Zephyr standing side-by-side.

She took a determined glance at me while I cried helplessly; doing everything I could to stall the inevitable as the Pinsir held me still. It didn't take any words for me to know that Swanna would help me as soon as she could when she took care of Zephyr.

As she turned to glare back at Zephyr, he did something unexpected. Zephyr smiled softly and bowed slightly. "My stunning Swanna, how good it is to see you again. Though I never did expect to see you again."

"I'm taking you down Zephyr. And with you shall go along the years of pain you have caused me and everyone else." Swanna spoke confidently, her eyes burning with hate, though I swore I caught a glimpse of tears behind the hate barrier.

"Swanna," Zephyr said lovingly, "You know you could never hurt me, no matter how you may have wished for it, we've been through too much."

"Yes, a week of bliss, and years of pain." Swanna shook her head determinedly. "So, so much."

Zephyr laughed softly. "Swanna, you always did have the oddest logic.

"I will end your scheme, along with your life." Swanna spoke, crouching back.

Zephyr smiled. "You know you could never hurt me Swanna. You simply—"Zephyr was cut off by Swanna's ice beam missing him by inches.

Zephyr's eyes hardened as he stared at Swanna. "Well….I'll give you some credit for that, my dear."

Like a rocket, Swanna took off with great speed and her right wing grew a steely silver. Zephyr's claws turned a sick dark violet color as Swanna drew nearer and nearer. With a flourish, Zephyr countered Swanna's steel wing with a Shadow claw. Opening his mouth, a shadowy blob formed. Gasping, Swanna realized his tactic and hurriedly withdrew her Steel Wing to avoid the Shadow Ball. Zephyr smirked.

"Go somewhere safe and wait for your signal, boy."

Zach stared at Swanna worriedly but bit his lip and said, "Yes father."

As Zach scurried away, everyone fell silent. The tension was as thick as fog, with not one muscle moving. No one made a sound. No one made a move. Everyone was too busy calculating what the other would do next. It was a battle of brains and strategy….for now.

_**OoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoOoO**_

**I'm awful tired, really, but at least I got this chapter done. Soo….I guess another 3 or 4 chapters left for those of you still reading this long dead story? Well, if you still are, I thank you. If you aren't, eh, I don't blame you. I feel like the fire of this story burned out a long time ago already…And how I managed to end the chapter in that abrupt moment I will never know. Goodbye until I find some kind of fuel. **


	13. Chapter 13: Make A Decision

**Sooo...yeah...**

**...Hi. /shot/**

**I know, I'm sorry I've been go so long. :/ But my cpu crashed and when i found out i lost all my files (including my pictures! Dx) I was literally like, **

**Me: Someone. Get me a knife. Right now.**

**Someone: But-**

**Me: GODDAMMIT GET ME A KNIFE RIGHT NOW SO I CAN $(*%# *)! * ...Ahaha yeah.**

**And thanks to Kaimon, SnivyPro18, Esper12, and Trolling Forever for reviewing! xD**

**SnivyPro18: thank you! You really gave me inspiration there! Don't worry, everyone needs a little criticisim every now and then. ;P I always criticize myself because I don't want my ego to get over inflated and become a person I hate. xD And criticism is always better coming from another person, in my opinion. I'll definitely PM if i hit a roadblock. So thank you! x)**

**kaimon: Don't worry, I'm working on it! :O i hope you'll keep reading though! Despite my slow updates. :/**

**Esper12: Haha, I've always wanted someone to acknowledge Swanna for the awesome fighter she is, so thanks. ;) And yes. Zephyr is a crap head. x) **

**TrollingForever: Thank you! xD I like your name btw. XDDD**

**Go on, read! I hope I made this chappie a little extra long for the wait. Although I can't really tell since most of my documents have expired, LOL.**

* * *

"GO!" Almost as if someone had signaled to begin, Swanna launched forward, flying full speed towards Zephyr. Zephyr smirked, almost looking as if he were mocking Swanna. The two began to fight in close-combat, surprising me. Swanna efficiently blocked all of Zephyr's attacks. But my short moment of observing was interrupted by a bloody burning feeling on my back.

"UAHH!" I screamed, tearing. I squirmed, trying to get out of the lave pit, but nothing worked. It felt like an odd sizzling relaxing sensation. The lava pit was swallowing me up….and I could do nothing.

"WHY?!"

Swanna fell back and gazed at my direction. The others, too, looked at me. But I was only focused on Zach.

"WAS IT ALL A LIE!?" I screamed at the top of my lungs.

Zach stared at me, refusing to look directly at my glassy eyes.

"DID YOU EVER CARE FOR ME?!"

Zach bit his lip and looked away. The tears started to fall like rain, sizzling and disappearing into the hot bubbling lava. I couldn't do anything. I was almost fully in the lava.

-Third Person-

"GRAAH!" Swanna became cloaked in a dark rumbling light, as she flew upwards in the atmosphere. Zephyr readied himself, preparing a dark pulse. Swanna shot down like a bullet, letting gravity pull her down. Zephyr released a powerful dark pulse, surrounding himself, but Swanna swirled, avoiding the full blast of the dark pulse, and pierced Zephyr's right shoulder joint. With a scream of pain, Zephyr leaped back. He held his pierced shoulder, wincing directly into Swanna's burning eyes.

"Let. Her. Go." Swanna spoke in calm, rumbling voice, but the malice and ice in her voice was no mistake.

"Too late." Zephyr whispered.

Swanna snapped her head towards the machine, but she only saw a paw left.

"Vivi!" Swanna cried, flying towards the paw. With great strength, she tried to pull Vivi back up, but the lava's hold was inhuman. In a few seconds, Zephyr was beside her.

"You're open." He whispered. Swanna's heart stopped. With a roar, Zephyr unleashed his most powerful Shadow Claw and successfully clawed Swanna's chest. She flew and fell to the floor, coughing up blood.

"GUILDMASTER!" Zach screamed. He turned his gaze towards the machine. The paw had disappeared, and Vivi, was fully in the machine.

"Vivi…." Zach croaked, falling. Was what he had done right? His father had told him so many stories of how the others denied a Zorua and Zoroark's happiness, just because they were 'dark' creatures. But if his father takes over the world, all sadness would end. Everybody would be happy. But he was sacrificing so many people to get there….was that right….? Shadow, Ms. Leavanny, Guildmaster, Shirley, Petilil, Cottonee, Team Toady, Team Titan, and heck, even Team Nova! And….Vivi as well. He didn't want to use them as sacrifices, but he wanted to stay true to his father….But….his father had barely been with him throughout his life, but his friends….were always there, supporting him, when his father didn't….so maybe….just maybe…..he had to help his—

"_Are you going to leave me just like the rest of them….son?"_

He froze. With a painful growl, he clutched his head. What should he do?! Help his friends, who have been with him for as long as he could remember, or stay with his father, who convinced him that there was no everlasting happiness in this world? A blinding light filled his eyes, and he found himself, floating in air, surrounded by nothing but white.

"What?" he whispered.

But suddenly, a vision became to come clear, and he saw Petilil and Cottonee in front of a grave. He stopped dead. Petilil was….._crying._ Never, in all his life, and in anyone else's had he seen Petilil cry. She was always so hyper, happy, and upbeat. To see her crying so much for the first time…..it was enough to break anyone's heart. Besides her, Cottonee was also tearing, but doing his best to comfort the crying Petilil. Zach knew that Cottonee must've been hurting most of all. To see his crush cry in front of him for the first time….Zach admired him for not losing it. Zach peered closer at the grave. He gasped. It was _Vivi's._

Before he even had a chance to understand what was happening, the world around him whizzed, and he was before another vision. It was almost like the same scene, but instead, now Shirley and Ms. Leavanny were in front of two graves. Ms. Leavanny was on her knees, screaming out in despair. Shirley had a look of utter sadness, and the emotions swirled in her eyes. Pain, regret, sorrow, confusion, love, and….._hate._ Shirley bit her lip before squeezing her eyes shut and planting her head onto the cold gravestone, letting the tears stream down beside Ms. Leavanny. Zach could only look on hopelessly. Seeing all the people close to him like this….Zach felt close to tears himself. Before he could get a closer look at the two graves, he was whirled into another vision, this one he had never seen before. He was in a dark cavern, with no light whatsoever. All the Pokemon were starving and skinny as sticks. They groaned and whined helplessly. The sun didn't ever seem to shine anymore outside. A wretched cold-hearted laugh broke through the deathly silence. It was a laugh that made everyone within hearing radius shrink and cower in fear. Zach narrowed his eyes. That must've been the ruler. Always a sick minded person with nothing but power in their mind. Zach was thrown towards the laugh, and he saw, _his father._ Zach stopped. He stared unmovingly at the father figure before him, covered in jewels of all kind, a high and might golden crown on his head, and even a velvet regal cape behind him. He gave a spine-chilling laugh as he swept his paws though the shimmering, sparkling treasure grove in front of him.

"Good work finding this." He chuckled, throwing a dry cracked cracker towards some Pokemon who looked starved and tired.

Zach raged inside with fury. How could he!? They did all that work to find the treasure, yet his sorry-ass-excuse of a father gives them a stale cracker.

But it seemed like he was the only one who held that line of thought because as soon as the cracker hit the ground, the Pokemon flew towards it and engaged in a heated battle, hurting their own allies for the tiny cracker as if their lives depended on it. Which it might as well.

As his father's malicious and victorious laugh echoed throughout the cavern, along with the noisy, disgusting noises of the Pokemon aching to eat, Zach felt his hearing and head get clouded. He was in a cloudy universe yet again as he lay limp suspended in air, no longer having the clue on who to believe anymore.

But with a flash, words suddenly appeared in front of him—great big words bolded in black.

**UNDERSTAND WHAT YOU HAVE TO DO NOW ZACH.**

"Wh-Wha?" Zach gasped.

**I HAVE GIVEN YOU ALL THE PROOF YOU NEED TO MAKE YOUR CHOICE.**

**YOUR CHOICE NOW ONLY LIES WITHIN YOU. **

**DO WHAT YOU HAVE TO.**

"Who are you?!" Zach yelled into the blankness. But as a blinding light overtook the words, he closed his eyes, and he ended up back in his own time.

"Zach….Zach! ZACH!" Zach snapped back to reality.

Zephyr had a look of pure impatience, rage, and excitement in his eyes.

"What are you waiting for?! Start the machine already!" he fumed.

Zach blinked. The machine was unsteadily shaking and glowing. His spirits swirled uncomfortably when he realized when Vivi's life was being drained while she was inside the machine.

"Yes father." He mumbled, skidding up to the machine.

"Useless boy…." He heard his father say. He grit his teeth in annoyance. He had been brainwashed. By all those lies Zephyr fed to him little by little….his friends only serving some kind of fuel for him to go on. Oh, he knew what he had to do alright.

As he fumbled with the switches, he secretly hit another. The machine began radiating such a brilliant glow; he was forced to back away and close his eyes, while his father came closer, his eyes shining expectantly.

"Finally!" Zephyr gasped. "Finally! All those years where they humiliated me and provoked me shall be replaced in an endless age of fear! YES!"

Swanna murmured quietly as she continued to ooze blood from her chest.

Zach quietly backed away until he was by Shadow's cage.

"Shadow." He whispered quietly.

Shadows ears perked up as he glared at Zach with an overwhelming wave of fury and rage.

"How could you?" he said in disgust. "Vivi trusted you so much. You were her partner."

"I know." He murmured. "But I fully know what I want to do now. Can you help me?"

Shadow let out a snort. "What, does that involve me suiciding so you won't have to kill me by your own hands?

Zach felt a prick of irritation at Shadow's uncooperative attitude, but told himself Shadow had every right to be furious with him.

Zach took a deep breath. "No. It involves saving Vivi."

At once, Shadow's expression softened. "…..I'm listening."

"Listen." Zach said as loudly as he dared so Shadow listened. "I commanded the machine to separate itself from Vivi. But it'll take some time, and even when the machine's alone, it's a pain in the neck to destroy. So we'll have to serve as distractions until the machine's ready. I was hoping you'd keep Zephyr busy while I help out Swanna." Zach slid his glance in Shadow's direction. "You follow?"

Shadow slowly nodded. "I think I got it. You can count on me. Just get me out and let's roll."

Zach nodded and slowly pricked the lock with his claw. As quietly as they could, they opened the door and Shadow leapt out of his cage.

"Ready?" Zach asked, ready to speed off in Swanna's direction like he had never been there.

"Ready." Shadow nodded. With a short burst of speed, Shadow took off sprinting away from Zach and Swanna's direction.

"Not if I can help it Zephyr!" He roared.

Zephyr's eyes bulged out of his head. "You! How did you—?!"

Zephyr spun around, but he only saw his son gingerly tending to Swanna.

"Fool!" Zephyr bellowed. "That imbecile escaped! Capture him!"

"W-What?!" Zach blinked, acting clueless. He gasped. "S-Shadow!"

"Get him! I will NOT let this fool interfere with my plans!" Zephyr commanded.

Before Zach took off he murmured mockingly, "Yes father." Too quiet for anyone to hear.

But before he could distract, another yell distracted all of them.

"SWANNA! ZACH!"

Zach froze. What?

Three Pokemon suddenly came out, two of them riding a sole one. The two leapt down, and the third started to fly back. "You're on your own lassies!" It sounded vaguely familiar….

But Zach's line of thinking was interrupted by a more familiar voice shouting 'ZACH!' and glomping him.

"W-Wha?!" Zach gasped, sincerely confused this time.

Two light purple eyes stared at his. It was Shirley.

"Sh-Sh-Sh-Sh-Shirley?!" he spluttered, hurriedly getting up.

"Oh Zach!" Shirley cooed, snuggling up to him. Zach was beyond confused, and he was even more so when another familiarity shouted, "SWANNA!"

Ms. Leavanny darted to Swanna's side.

"Swanna! Swanna! Oh, _god, Swanna, __**please, please**_ wake up!" Ms. Leavanny gasped. Swanna could barely keep her eyelids open.

M. Leavanny's eyes found Zephyr closely watching her.

"_You fiend!"_ Ms. Leavanny seethed, standing up.

"Yo, Sue." Zephyr grinned devilishly. "Here to play a game with me too? Swanna lost already."

"_Bastard!" _

Ms. Leavanny lunged towards Zephyr, but he easily side-stepped it, and thrust a Shadow Claw towards her. She deflected it, and swiftly used a close-range Magical Leaf.

"Shit!" Zephyr cursed, leaping back, but got severely cut by the colorful razor blades. He winced as he swiped away leaking blood from a rather deep cut on his cheek.

Zephyr smiled. "Aren't you quite the fighter now?"

Ms. Leavanny rolled her eyes. "And who do you think I owe that privilege to?"

Behind Zephyr, Shadow and Zach quietly met up.

"Who knew that Ms. Leavanny would unknowingly help us?" Shadow whispered. Zach nodded in agreement, but narrowed his eyes at the trio—Ms. Leavanny, Zephyr, and Swanna, feeling that there was more to their past and relationship than they let on.

"Zach!" Shirley whispered. She looked around, a little frightened. "What happened to Vivi?!"

Zach realized they had no time to dwindle around. Ms. Leavanny had provided them the distraction they needed. It was up to them to use it.

"Follow. Me." Zach said, gravelly serious.

Shadow nodded, but Shirley looked perplexed. "What? What are we doing?"

Zach stared ahead at the machine as they began running towards it. "We're going to destroy it the moment is releases Vivi."

Shirley nodded and they arrived in front of the quaking, glowing machine. They rounded it to avoid Zephyr's sight. No matter how loud they grew, Zephyr might wave it off as the machine's upcoming.

"Go! Focus your most powerful moves on it!" Zach eyes glowed purple as he released a fresh wave of a Dark Pulse.

Shadow gathered a dark light in his mouth, and threw a powerful Shadow Ball at it. Shirley concentrated a radiating energy in her orb and fired a Psybeam. All three moves hit the machine, but it didn't seem to do much.

Shadow and Shirley's faces fell, but Zach yelled, "Don't let that get in the way keep firing!"

All three began to shoot at different angles and kept attacking the machine. Finally, the machine seemed to have absorbed enough damage to the point where it was steaming and looked like it would blow up any second.

"Yes!" Shadow grinned.

"We can destroy it like this!" Shirley panted, not used to using up so much energy as she had never fought much, yet had powerful moves.

"Wait." Zach commanded. "The machine hasn't separated from Vivi yet. If we destroy it a second too soon or too late…" Zach looked at them with flashing eyes. "Vivi could die."

They both swallowed and kept a steady eye on the machine, their hearts racing. Zach suddenly realized that their movement lay on him. He was the one that knew the machine well enough to predict its movements. He would've known if the machine had separated from Vivi or not. He would decide whether Vivi lived or not. It was up to him. How ironic. He had intended to kill her, and now it was him that decided whether she would live. Or die.

The machine glowed red for a minute, then flashed brightly.

"NOW!" Zach roared.

Shirley, having used up most of her energy, instead focused a cunning Swift towards the machine while Shadow and Zach both respectively powered up their Dark Pulse and Shadow Ball. As the last of attacks faded, the machine started to implode on itself, and for a split second, Zach thought everything was going to be alright. He would rescue Vivi and put her somewhere safe with Swanna and Shirley. No matter how strong his father was, he couldn't handle three opponents after his bloodshed. Hopefully Ms. Leavanny held her own against him, and weakened him enough so that he and Shadow alone could take Zephyr out, but that was when he realized…

Vivi's silhouette wasn't in the machine's outline. When it was supposed to be…

.

_If _she had separated from the machine. But….she wasn't. She was still merged with the machine. Meaning…..they had just carved the pathway to death for Vivi.

"SHIT! VIVI!" Zach cursed, running up to the machine with every last fiber of his being.

"What?! Do you mean Vivi was still merged with the machine?!" Shirley cried.

"ZACH!" Shadow yelled, whether it was because he was worried because Zach had ran towards the imploding machine, or whether it was because Shadow was furious at Zach's miscalculations….which would unanimously cost Vivi's life…they may never know.

Without another second, Zach leapt into the collapsing machine, every last nerve of him ready to die if that was what it cost to save Vivi.

* * *

**How was it? OuO Of course there is still more to come. And after I finish this one, do you think I should make something similar to this? I don't mean by making another PMD, but just another pkmn story. If not I guess I'll just go to my anime ones. ;) Wait...I feel like I just ruined the sad depressing mood my chappie created here...Ah well. Bye-bi! xD**


	14. Chapter 14: Too Soon For Goodbye

**Holy. Crap. I was honestly going pretty slow at first, but dang! Looking back to your reviews really inspired me :') 51 reviews. 51 FREAKING REVIEWS. I THINK I'M GONNA CRY. OH GOD, YOU GUYS...You have made this authoress truly happy x') I think I made this the longest chapter yet. I just had a sudden motivation boom, so ;) (I reply to the latest chapter reviews, but i definitely read all of your reviews and take note of them, if you want me to reply, just ask)**

**SnivyPro18: Oh god...this is one of your favorites? This is just... 'Scuse me, I gotta little something in my eye... T_T**

**TrollingForever: Oh geez you guys make me so happy...then I hope this chapter was worth the wait! xD**

**ThePMD2fanboy: Omg. You're a fanboy? OMGZ I ALWAYS WANTED TO MEET A FANBOY. I'm really glad you like this fanfic, and you'll see whether they get together or not...xD**

**MrPirate: ...Is sparse good? xD And don't worry, I'm planning to do something with this story after its finished if my reviewers would want that.**

**Esper13: I know right? Oh, trove. I'll make changes to that when I have some time and actually remember to do it. LOL. Yes, Leavanny in rage mode is awesome (or maybe I just like rage mode too much ;P)**

**Who got the new pokemon mystery dungeon game?! ;DD I finished it, and while I felt that it wasn't really a disappointment, it wasn't really amazing either. I liked the storyline, but you know. Maybe after playing PMD2, I feel that my expectations of storylines are too high. PMD2 forever, right? **

_**EXTREMELY IMPORTANT NOTICE PLEASE READ**_

_**Okay, I was thinking, once i'm done with this story, I want to know, would you guys want me to rewrite it? I seriously feel I let some of you down with that sudden sharp turn and I really felt like this story had potential. I won't be uploading it until I have a few chapters rewritten so you won't have to wait in agony. Looking back at this story, I realized I kind of made it cliche-ish, Mary-sue-ish, and cheesy. Or maybe that's just me. But I will be adding more into the story to make it more meaningful, so I want to know if you guys would like that. Perhaps it'd take me months, but I hate it when I didn't try my best...and i know I definitely did not try my best with this story(except for the ending, you reviewers really make me try on that). So, after you read the chapter, please remember to include your opinion in your review!**_

* * *

"What do we do!? What do we do?!" Shirley cried, tears streaming down her face. "I thought everything was going to be okay! I thought…." Shirley was unable to finish as she just sat down, looking at the machine desperately.

Shadow kept a hard stare on the machine as well, unusually calm. "We….can only wait. Vivi….she wouldn't want anyone else to sacrifice their lives…..Zach too…."

Shirley shut her eyes as she let out soft whimpers and sobs. "Please be okay…..Zach…..Vivi….Please….."

"…" Vivi slowly opened her eyes. She was floating in a strange white-pale yellow cloudy dimension. Strangely, she felt no pain. But she was tired beyond belief, only wanting to go to sleep into an endless slumber. Suddenly, the memories flowed back into her like an injection. Vivi opened her eyes fully.

"I…..remember." Vivi's eyes were wide.

* * *

"_Vivi….Vivi….wake up." _

_Vivi opened her eyes to see her mother gently shaking her. _

"_Vivi, wake up. Hurry and do your chores so we can to your cousin's birthday party." Her mom spoke gracefully, leaving the room._

_Vivi simply sat up, yawning loudly._

_With a soft laugh, her Mime Jr. leapt onto the bed and into her lap._

_Vivi smiled tiredly. "Wah…it must be easy being a pokemon, huh? No need to worry about school or anything…." She petted Mime Jr._

_Mime Jr. squealed cutely._

"_Alrighty, let's go." She stood up and stretched, brushed her teeth, and then went downstairs and grabbed a rake._

"_Mimey, go and play, I'll come too as soon as I'm done raking the leaves."_

"_Mime!" Mime Jr. saluted playfully and hopped off._

_Vivi hummed as she gathered the leaves. After a while though, as she sighed, and wiped off sweat from her forehead from the hot sun, she heard Mime Jr. scream, "Miiiiimmmeeee!"_

_Vivi whipped her head in the scream's direction. "Mimey….Mimey?!" _

_She dropped the rake and ran toward the backyard, where she saw Mime Jr. on the ground, straining to get up. _

"_Mimey!" Vivi gasped, running over to Mime Jr. and gently helping him up, fumbling with her slipper along the way, so she just took it off. "What happened?!"_

_Mime Jr. noticed Vivi was there, and began waving his hands frantically, trying to shoo her away._

_Vivi noticed the orb on Mime Jr.'s forehead was slightly dull, and she realized that he had been fighting._

"_Mimey…?" Vivi furrowed her eyebrows in confusion._

_She then noticed a dark purple light over her and Mime Jr. and screamed as she saw a gigantic Shadow Ball headed her way. _

"_Kyaaaa!" Vivi shielded Mime Jr. and the orb enveloped them. _

_As the orb slowly shrunk, only Mime Jr. was left._

_Mime Jr. opened his eyes and started searching frantically for Vivi. But only her slipper was left._

_Vivi was thrown in a black universe as she landed on her back. _

_Vivi sat up painfully, tears falling from her eyes like rain. _

"_Mi…mey….mom….everyone…help…." she sobbed quietly._

_Vivi snapped her head up, as she felt a presence, and felt her heart nearly stop when she saw two huge slanted violet eyes staring at her. _

_Letting out a muffled yelp, she clumsily got to her feet and began to run._

_The eyes followed her and a clamor of voices began to laugh._

"_No…no!" Vivi cried, gasping and panting. _

_Without warning, a large hand suddenly grasped her, and unfortunately, with all the breath she wasted running and screaming, it only took one firm grasp to squeeze the breath out of her. As her vision blurred and she coughed and wheezed, she felt herself being lifted off the ground._

_"I...can't...hold...on..." Vivi's eyes closed as she blacked out._

* * *

"...Mi…..mey…..huh…." Vivi grinned wearily.

"Am I….going to die…..?" Vivi's grin disappeared as her dark eyes shone and shimmered with tears.

Her thoughts abruptly flashed back to Zach, and instead of feeling the hard boiled anger that she was used to, all she felt was…..sadness.

Tears ran down from her eyes. "I guess….he never really cared about me." Vivi sighed, tears running down her cheeks.

Vivi smiled bitterly. "I just wish I wasn't such an idiot….." Vivi let out a cold piercing laugh. "I'm really sorry you guys…..Petilil, Ms. Leavanny, Swanna, Shadow, Shirley, Team Titan, and Team Toady…..Sorry for being so useless."

Vivi laid back. "Is it time for me to die now….? I'm kinda tired of everything….." Vivi's eyes flashed. "Of all the lies and disappointment…."

The area flashed a blinding white and Vivi closed her eyes peacefully. _"Goodbye painful world. And Zach….I hope you rot in hell."_

* * *

"Damn it all…." Zach mumbled, swimming through the cloudy universe. "Where the hell is Vivi…..?!"

"Somewhere where she doesn't want you to find her."

Zach's ears perked up as he whirled around to see a strange figure, looking like himself and someone else….

"Who are you?" Zach growled.

The figure smiled faintly. "Do you really have the time to be asking that? I thought you were looking for Vivi."

Zach glared at the figure. As much as he was bothered by the presence of the pokemon, saving Vivi was much more important.

"Fine. But what do you mean, 'Somewhere where she doesn't want you to find her.'?" Zach questioned.

"So you've finally got the hang of it. But just speaking…..isn't it kind useless to save Vivi now?"

Zach felt anger surging inside of him. "What—?!"

The figure held its hands—or paws up in peace. "Hey, hey, I'm just saying." The figure shrugged. "Vivi hates your guts right now remember? And it's not like she was really strong anyway. She was just the key because of her personality and mental strength. If you do manage to get her out, you'd still have to fight Zephyr. And there is a chance of you guys winning, with or without Vivi."

Zach's eyes hardened.

"What difference would it make if you did save Vivi? And if you didn't….well, that's just one more life lost in this world of casualties. But if you don't get out of here now, you'll be another addition to the lost."

Zach spoke up quietly. "She's stronger….maybe not physically, but mentally. She might hate me now, but….I regret everything I've ever done…" The image of Vivi crying in pain flashed in Zach's mind and he grimaced.

"…_..I hope you rot in hell."_

Zach winced. What was that? The thought was so cold and icy…filled with hate. Zach stared to run in the direction where his instinct led him. He stopped with a start as he saw Vivi floating in the middle of the dimension, surrounded by a transparent barrier.

"Vivi!" Zach cried, rushing over to her, but when he touched the barrier, it gave him an electric shock that pulsed through his veins, and bounced him back.

Zach stared dumbly at the barrier. "What the….VIVI!"

He got up and tried to ram through the barrier, but the same electricity shot him straight back.

"Da-dammit…" Zach growled as he strained to get up.

The figure shook its head. "You can't get through there."

Zach whipped his head toward the figure. "And why not?"

"Because Vivi doesn't want you to. She created that barrier because she's already accepted her death and doesn't want anyone to disturb her." It replied simply.

Zach narrowed his eyes. "How do you know that? And Vivi's not so weak as to give up simply like this!"

"Meh, it's pretty easy to tell for me. Can't you see how hard she's closing her eyes? Maybe not, but you're not in her situation. Strong people can crumble down anytime, in some cases, it doesn't even take much to do it."

Zach looked toward Vivi. He saw that Vivi was indeed shutting her eyes tightly, so tightly, you would think she had been scared to death.

Zach's eyes softened as he slowly approached the orb surrounding Vivi again. "…..Is that true…? You…closed yourself up because you hated me….? Vivi…."

Instinctively, he placed a paw on the barrier, and when the shock flew through him again, he winced, but kept still, further pressing his paw against the barrier.

The figure stared. "Tell me why you want to save her. Tell me."

"…She….may not be strong physically….she may not help us out either…..and….she may hate me for all she's worth, but….I will save her. No one deserves to die….especially not her. She came to this world, without knowing her purpose. She didn't ask to be here. She never chose to be here. And yet….if this goes on…..she will die here. Dying in a world you never even asked to be in…..that seems utterly and unbelievably cruel, doesn't it?"

The figure nodded. "It does seem so. But….it may just be me, but I feel like you're hiding something else. Mind shedding some light?"

"….I like her. She's quick-tempered, stubborn, foolish, sensitive, hard-headed, and unbelievably dense…..but…I like her. I like her….so I'd rather have myself die than her." Zach breathed, starting to feel the energy some back.

The figure smirked. "Nice to see you've finally accepted it…so….what will you do now? You wait any longer, everything'll be doomed."

Zach snorted. "What am I gonna do now, you say? Isn't that obvious?" He started to walk back from the barrier, and inhale and exhale deeply. His eyes glinted furiously. "….I'm gonna break this barrier and save her, of course."

Before the figure could say anything, Zach let out a cry and charged full power towards the barrier, ramming his head against it.

The electricity burst stronger than ever, but Zach would not be sent back. With a grunt, he pushed his forehead harder against the barrier, shutting his eyes from the pain.

He opened one eye and strained to get a glimpse of Vivi. Her eyes were still shut tightly, and her breathing seemed to speed up.

"_I…don't care if you hate me. I don't care if you'll never look at me or see me again. I…. don't….care! Just…as long as I know…you're at least alive and smiling….that's….that's enough for me…so please! Please….Vivi…..you have to…..LIVE!"_

"Grruhh….Rrrr…AHRRHHH!" With a yell and a final push from Zach, the barrier shattered, and Zach limply fell down.

The figure let out a small gasp and in a flash, was at Zach and Vivi's side.

"Hey….you okay?"

Zach let out many uneven breaths as he could still feel some crackling electricity and nodded slowly.

"Vivi…." Zach managed to croak out in between pants, "Is…is she…..okay….?"

"….Yeah. She'll be fine. So don't tell me you're gonna stagger out of here with your condition like that."

Zach limply got up. "I…have to…not unless you can lift us to the exit huh Mr. I-still-need-to-reveal-my-identity?"

"I'll tell you who I am when one of these two things happen: a white light surrounds us and blinds us, which pretty much means we're gonna suffocate, or you make it to the exit."

"Damn…" Zach grumbled, getting Vivi up on his back and staggering to balance her.

Slowly, he began to walk along a transparent white path, clearly fading. With each step Zach took, his vision blurred just a little bit more and his paws became heavier.

Zach let out a weak cough before the figure suddenly pointed out, "There! There's the exit!"

Zach looked forward and saw a small white space, light flooding through it.

Gathering every last bit of his strength, Zach took the last few steps to the opening. Suddenly, a shock as sharp as a knife seemed to cut through his knee, and his front right leg fell to the floor.

"Shi—!" Zach cursed, feeling the aftereffects of the shock.

As Zach's breathing started to increase abnormally again, the figure looked onward.

"….Well, I guess you've earned the right to know who I am. I'm y—"the figure was interrupted by two paws grabbing onto Zach's other front paw, one a pinkish lavender and the other a raven black.

"W-Wh…." Zach spluttered, frantically looking around for the figure that had mysteriously disappeared.

"ZACH!" two voices cried as they started to pull him.

While they did their best to pull, he started to flounder on, all while trying to keep Vivi on his back. A dim whiteness started to surround them. Feeling his heart start to race in fear, he started struggling forth, until finally a burst of light forced him to close his eyes.

When he opened his eyes again, a breath of fresh air hit his face and he fell onto the prickly grass with a thump.

"Vivi!—Here," Shadow took Vivi off his back, relieving an exhausted Zach, and placed her gently against a tree.

"Zach! Oh, Zach—you look like you've been through heaven and hell! Are you okay?!" Shirley gasped.

Zach coughed violently as he nodded.

"Y-Yeah, I'm okay…how's things over here…?" Zach hesitantly asked.

Shirley and Shadow exchanged worried looks.

"….Well…see for yourself…" Shirley said sadly, looking towards Ms. Leavanny and Zephyr's battle.

Zach's breath caught in his throat. Ms. Leavanny was panting and was slumped over, seeming to be in even more pain than Zach and Vivi combined.

"When you had went to rescue Vivi, the match was pretty even-sided at first…." Shirley explained, "But as more time passed, the battle became more and more one-sided against Ms. Leavanny…."

"We were planning to help if you didn't come back sooner or later, but with you like this, Vivi out cold, and Shirley with little to none battle experience whatsoever, it looks like I'm the only firearm here. As much as I hate to admit it, I can't win one-on-one with Zephyr. And it looks like Ms. Leavanny is about to be put out of commission at any moment…." Shadow finished seriously.

Shirley's eyes and ears drooped. "…Were we not strong enough after all…?"

Zach took a moment to take everything into consideration. "….Maybe not, but the one thing fath— I mean—Zephyr loves most is his machine. If his machine is destroyed, it'll distract him long enough just so we can take him down…" Zach cringed. He'd have to get used to not calling Zephyr his father anymore. "So if time is on our side, the machine will explode at any moment before Ms. Leavanny gets put down."

"Well, just to ensure that time is on our side…" Shadow walked over to the machine and got in a fighting stance. "….Shall we help speed it up a little?"

Zach nodded and started to walk beside Shadow.

"Z-Zach, don't push yourself!" Shirley yelped.

Zach got beside Shadow and breathed in deeply, his eyes showing determination and no fear.

"I saved Vivi after I nearly killed her, and we got this far. No way I'm letting Zephyr take that away…." Zach spoke coldly, steadying his energy.

Shirley faked a sighed. "There's no helping it, huh?" Shirley gave a weary smile, for she already knew that Zach would not give in no matter what. "Then I'll have to do everything in my power to help."

In a split second, Shadow threw a bursting Shadow Ball, Zach unleashed a furious Shadow Claw, and Shirley concentrated a glowing Psybeam.

"It won't take much to set it off now…Come on!" Zach commanded, clawing the machine again.

Near the trees, the combined noises of Shadow, Zach, and Shirley destroying the machine and the clashing of Ms. Leavanny and Zephyr started to stir Vivi.

"M….Mmm…." Vivi cringed, feeling her sore back ache.

She blinked. _"I thought I died…."_

Vivi winced once the loud clashing sounds met her ears again. She opened her eyes and almost choked when she saw Shirley, Shadow, and Zach attacking the machine that swallowed her.

Her blood started to turn icy cold at the sight of Zach, but she was distracted by more clashing noises from the other side.

She inched to the other side a little, her eyes nearly bugging out when she saw Ms. Leavanny and Zephyr fighting with a bleeding Swanna off to the side.

Vivi blinked numerously, trying to absorb and make sense of what was happening around her.

With great effort, Vivi stood up and started to weakly walk towards the fighting trio, trying to ignore the sight of Zach.

"Hey…..guys….." Vivi started.

The machine started to wheeze as it released a powerful gust of air, as if it were exhaling. Electricity started to crackle around it, and Vivi simply stared, dumbfounded.

With a nod from Zach, Shadow and Shirley started to whoop and jump around, until Shadow noticed Vivi.

"V-V-Vivi!" Shadow spluttered.

Shirley and Zach immediately looked Vivi's way.

Vivi cocked an eyebrow and looked away from Zach, making sure to give Shirley a small smile so she wouldn't misunderstand.

Zach's insides turned. _"I knew it…she still hates me after all…that's okay I guess….as long as she's at least alive…"_

"Vivi! You're okay! That's great!" Shadow exclaimed.

"Mmm! We were really worried about you!" Shirley agreed.

"Oh….yeah….I guess…." Vivi said awkwardly. _"To be honest, I kind of wanted to die….but to leave all of them here….I suppose that would've been selfish of me."_

Zach calmly made his way over. Vivi looked him in the eye and turned away, indicating that she wanted nothing to do with him.

"Vivi." Zach's voice rang out firmly and clearly, and somewhat accepting.

Vivi seemed a little startled at Zach's tone, but slightly leaned her head towards his direction, showing that she was listening.

"I know you hate me right now….and I accept that. I won't try to change that if it's really what you want. But please. Cooperate for this part. Please, until Zephyr has gone down and we return to our home, please, just look at me and cooperate. I don't care if when we get home, you'll go back to the human world and move as far as you can away from me and even disband Team DarkFlame…..just….cooperate for now." Zach said.

It took all of Vivi's strength to not flinch. Sure….right now she hated him….but now that she clearly thought about it, she didn't want to move away from Levacen Town, definitely not disband Team DarkFlame, and go back to the human world…she didn't remember anyone from the human world right now except Mimey, and if she went back to the human world and remembered everyone….would she love them as much as her pokemon friends?

Hiding all of these thoughts, Vivi nodded slowly.

Zach let out a little sigh of relief.

"All right. Let's hide in some trees and when Zephyr comes to see what's wrong with the machine, we'll rush over to Swanna and Ms. Leavanny." Zach instructed.

Everyone nodded and ran over to the trees, Shirley creating a little Light Screen to help them hide better.

Sure enough, the machine's malfunctions grew louder and louder until Zephyr finally tore his attention from the battle and to the machine.

His eyes widened in horror as he rushed over to the machine. "No…no, my precious machine…..No! What's wrong?!"

Stealthily as they could, Shirley and Vivi rushed over to Swanna and Shadow and Zach over to Ms. Leavanny.

"Guildmaster! Guildmaster, will you be okay?!" Vivi cried.

"….Oh….Vivi….I'm….glad you're alright….don't worry about me, I'll be fine…..Just….please…..go help Sue…." Swanna breathed quietly.

"Guildmaster, don't be ridiculous, you're in a much more critical condition. Don't be unreasonable!" Shirley scolded.

Swanna let out a weak laugh. "Ha….Shirley….really…I'm fine….I can even stand…here…."

Swanna surprisingly sat up slowly, but surely, only her breathing uneven.

"I only need to catch my breath….please….go help Sue…"

Shirley started seriously at Swanna for a moment before finally going to Ms. Leavanny, Zach, and Shadow.

However, Vivi stayed and tried to help Swanna up.

"Vivi, really…you needn't worry so much….I'm fine honestly…" Swanna tried to smile.

"Guildmaster…" Vivi frowned.

"You can't be serious….YOU CAN'T BE SERIOUS!" A deep voice suddenly boomed as everyone turned their heads in Zephyr's direction.

"I spent a decade to invent this machine….and I admit it's my fault for rushing it….but I can't just let it die here! I REFUSE!" Zephyr roared, and he leapt into the machine!

Zach, Vivi, Shirley, Ms. Leavanny, and Shadow all stared dumfounded at Zephyr's action, Vivi finally rushing over to the rest.

"What….what do we do?!" Vivi gasped.

Zach's eyes remained frozen on the machine. "…..We can't do anything. The machine is already collapsing. It's too late. He'll die…."

Shirley frowned in confusion as she looked upon the machine. "Why….after all that he has gone and done….why….why does that feel so wrong now….?"

"I'm definitely not one to give him a second chance, but I would have had more satisfaction knowing that I defeated him by my own hands…." Shadow murmured.

Out of nowhere, a white blur shot past them and into the machine.

"What—?" Vivi mused.

"…..That was...….no…..." Ms. Leavanny turned to where Swanna was, only to see nothing but air and grass. "….Swanna?! SWANNA?! SWANNA!"

A deep realization sank into them like a knife.

"Guildmaster?!" Shirley and Vivi screamed.

"Are you kidding me?!" Shadow croaked.

"You can't be serious….!" Zach mumbled, eyes wide with disbelief.

"SWANNA!" Ms. Leavanny yelled, getting up.

Everyone lunged to stop Ms. Leavanny.

"Ms. Leavanny! I….I don't understand why Swanna did that, but….no! You can't! You'll die too!" Zach shot, pushing against Ms. Leavanny's legs.

"No! Why?! I can't…..SWANNA!" Ms. Leavanny cried, tears starting to leak from her eyes.

Ms. Leavanny's legs gave out as she tumbled upon the grass, crying.

Shirley comfortingly hugged Ms. Leavanny. "We…can't do anything to help now…..we can only pray Swanna will be okay…"

A screeching noise sounded, as the machine glowed white, and exploded. Everyone covered themselves as debris flew everywhere. As soon as most of the dust had cleared, they spotted Zephyr and Swanna, sprawled on the grass, not far from each other.

Without hesitation, Ms. Leavanny broke apart from the group and ran to Swanna. "Swanna! You goddamn idiot! Why….Zephyr doesn't deserve to be saved! Why….why….." Ms. Leavanny sobbed into Swanna's wing.

Swanna barely opened her eyes, now dull and seemingly glazed over. She kept her eyes on the blue sky. "Ah….Sue….I….am truly sorry…." Tears started to run down from Swanna's glazed eyes. "But….I….." Swanna let out a muffled sob.

"Swanna...you...you can't die! You just can't! Who will manage the guild?! Who will take care of the apprentices?! What..." Ms. Leavanny stared down at the ground, trembling. "What will I do without you...?"

Swanna smiled faintly. "Sue...you...have all the potential...to take over the guild and succeed everything from me...Sue. You are strong...So, so very strong...Stronger than I ever was. You will manage...Don't worry...you will..."

Zach's brows furrowed. "Guildmaster….why….why….would you….?"

Swanna slightly turned her head in his direction. "That voice….Zach….please….I…am not going to live long enough to tell you the whole story. Zach….just….let me say…..how truly sorry I am. I am so sorry…..for hating you."

Zach and the others blinked. "H-Hating me? Y-you hated me?"

Swanna smiled thinly. "From the moment I first saw you….I immediately knew you were Zephyr's son…and I hated you for that. I hated you so much…..but….as time pressed on….you looked more and more like a thirsty explorer than a corrupted child….so I'm sorry."

Zach cast his gaze downward. "….It's alright….I understand…."

"I….am so truly sorry. I actually really love you Zach…..I really love you….I love you so much…." Swanna started to cough.

"I love you too Guildmaster….." Zach whispered, slight confusion in his voice.

"I really love all you so, so much…..please…take care of everything…."

Ms. Leavanny let out a hollow laugh. "What...what are you talking about Swanna? You…you're gonna live…to take on anything….you'll live! It's...too soon for you to die! It's...too soon...for you to say goodbye..."

Shadow and Shirley looked away miserably.

Swanna smiled. "I'm so glad I had a friend like you Sue….Vivi…..Shadow….Shirley….Zach….and….all my other pupils…..I love you all so much….I….."

The light in Swanna's eyes faded as she let out a ravaging, bloody cough. Then, she lay still and spoke no more, her motionless eyes still fixed on the vast sky...

Ms. Leavanny froze. "….Swanna? Hey….Swanna…..you….stop pretending…..hey…" Furious tears started to stream down her face. "Hey…! Swanna…..you're not…..dead….right….? HEY! SWANNA! You're gonna smile and return to the guild, just like always right?! Right?! Hey! Swanna!"

Vivi, Zach, Shadow, and Zach all exchanged depressed looks as they started to coax Ms. Leavanny away.

"The Poke police will take care of this…" Zach whispered to Shadow, who nodded.

"No! Stop! NO! SWANNA! WAKE UP! SWANNA! SWANNAAA!" Ms. Leavanny screamed, thrashing about, reaching for Swanna's still body.

As Ms. Leavanny screamed, Vivi and Shirley looked in opposite directions and let out soft sobs, trying to hide their tears as well. Shadow stared grimly at the ground. Zach stared at the ground, his eyes glassy, but a part of his mind still felt that there was a deeper meaning to Swanna's words… _"I actually really love you Zach….I really love you…"_

The shaken foursome continued escorting a hysterical Ms. Leavanny to the entrance of the plains, all while the screams of Ms. Leavanny for her precious friend could be heard echoing into the clear blue sky, the sky Swanna had looked up to in her last moments….

"SWANNA!"

* * *

**...I'm kind of curious to see what feedback I'll get after that, hahaha. I tried my best to make it depressing, but I felt like it just wasn't there...Oh well...Soooo, please review!**


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